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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. fine — all right
  3. file — a document
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. band — a music group
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. branch — a division
  14. fork — in a road
  15. bore — to tire
  16. file — a tool
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. file — a line of people
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. fine — high quality
  24. bore — to drill

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