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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  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 — a garden tool
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bound — obliged
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mine — for digging
  8. rash — a series
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. fork — in a road
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bound — tied together
  16. wind — moving air
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. bound — certain
  20. wind — moving air
  21. drill — army training
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. drill — the tool
  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