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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. field — farmland
  4. bank — for money
  5. object — to protest
  6. charge — electricity
  7. bank — of a river
  8. field — a subject
  9. fork — in a road
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bore — to tire
  14. field — for sport
  15. bank — for money
  16. object — a thing
  17. bore — to drill
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. track — a song
  20. hand — in cards
  21. object — an aim
  22. charge — in control
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. charge — a price

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