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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: pit · rock · march · fork · wind · tear

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  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. march — music
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rock — music
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. tear — from crying
  8. march — the month
  9. fork — in a road
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pit — in a race
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rock — a stone
  16. tear — to rip
  17. pit — a hole
  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