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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fork · march · shower · press · branch · prune · land · present

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. branch — a division
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. march — the month
  5. land — to come down
  6. present — there
  7. march — music
  8. present — the time now
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. present — a gift
  11. press — a publisher
  12. fork — in a road
  13. march — the month
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. prune — to trim
  16. shower — rain
  17. prune — to trim
  18. press — newspapers
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. land — ground
  21. shower — to wash
  22. press — to push
  23. land — a country
  24. shower — a meteor shower

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com