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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. prune — to trim
  3. content — happy
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. fine — all right
  7. race — humankind
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. pit — in a race
  11. fine — high quality
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. race — a contest
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. pit — a hole
  20. branch — a division
  21. prune — to trim
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. race — the arms race
  24. calf — a young animal

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