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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. stand — to bear
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. net — for catching
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bound — obliged
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. bound — tied together
  16. net — in sport
  17. plane — a tool
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. net — after costs
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. bound — certain
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. mouse — the animal

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