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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bank · field · fork · wave · last · rule

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. last — to go on
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. last — finally
  6. rule — a law
  7. field — farmland
  8. fork — in a road
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. bank — for money
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. last — final
  14. field — a subject
  15. bank — for money
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. field — for sport

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