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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 120 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: bowl · fall · bark · cell · fork · fine

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. fine — high quality
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. bark — to shout
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — the season
  17. fork — in a road
  18. fine — all right

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