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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: fork · stick · present · cap · wind · shower

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cap — a lid
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. shower — to wash
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — of ice
  13. wind — moving air
  14. shower — rain
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. present — there
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wind — moving air

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