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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wake — a trail
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. mark — a grade
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. mark — a trace
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. cold — not warm
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. chip — for betting
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. fork — in a road
  14. branch — a division
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. cold — an illness
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. plane — a tool
  22. chip — to eat
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. fork — a garden tool

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