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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. band — a music group
  7. spell — magic
  8. branch — a division
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. club — a group
  11. sharp — clever
  12. spell — a short time
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. club — for dancing
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. spell — letters
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. fork — in a road
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. club — for golf
  24. branch — of a bank

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