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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 · cold · tear · last · drill · suit

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. suit — in cards
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. drill — a practice
  8. suit — to fit
  9. tear — to rip
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. cold — not warm
  14. last — to go on
  15. cold — an illness
  16. last — finally
  17. suit — clothes
  18. last — final

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