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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.

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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. mark — a grade
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — what's left
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — a committee
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. board — to get on
  10. capital — money
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — a coil
  13. firm — steady
  14. mark — a trace
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. rest — a break
  17. saw — the tool
  18. spring — the season
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — a city
  21. firm — a company
  22. saw — the tool
  23. fork — in a road
  24. firm — decided

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