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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. craft — boats
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. track — to keep track
  5. track — a path
  6. mine — for digging
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cold — not warm
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. net — for catching
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. net — in sport
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. track — a song
  17. rush — hurry
  18. cold — an illness
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. craft — a skill
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. net — after costs
  24. cell — a phone

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