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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 116 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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. perch — the fish
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. row — to paddle
  7. game — wild animals
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bank — for money
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. scale — size or range
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bank — of a river
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. scale — in music
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. game — a match
  24. row — a line

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