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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rest — what's left
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bark — to shout
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. clip — to cut
  8. fork — in a road
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. roll — a list
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. mate — a friend
  14. wake — a trail
  15. mate — to breed
  16. roll — a cake
  17. mate — a partner
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. rest — a break
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rest — what's left

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