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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 120 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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. band — a music group
  3. spell — magic
  4. drill — the tool
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. band — a ring
  8. charge — a price
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. spell — a short time
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. drill — army training
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. charge — electricity
  18. march — the month
  19. charge — in control
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. march — music
  22. spell — letters
  23. march — the month
  24. drill — a practice

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