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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bound — certain
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bound — tied together
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. date — the fruit
  10. rest — what's left
  11. clip — a video
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. clip — to cut
  14. roll — a cake
  15. mug — a cup
  16. clip — for paper
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. mug — a face
  21. bound — obliged
  22. mug — to rob
  23. fork — in a road
  24. roll — a list

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