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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: squash · row · wind · racket · march · fork

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. squash — to crush
  5. march — music
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. row — a line
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. squash — the sport
  11. fork — in a road
  12. wind — moving air
  13. row — to paddle
  14. wind — moving air
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month

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