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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 · band · row · chest · bear · prune

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. chest — a box
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. fork — in a road
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. row — a line
  8. band — a music group
  9. prune — to trim
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bear — the animal
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. bear — the animal
  14. row — to paddle
  15. prune — to trim
  16. chest — of your body
  17. band — a ring
  18. bear — to put up with

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