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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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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: row · bore · present · march · fork · capital

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. present — a gift
  3. row — a line
  4. march — the month
  5. bore — to tire
  6. capital — a city
  7. bore — to drill
  8. capital — money
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. present — the time now
  12. present — there
  13. march — music
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. row — to paddle
  17. march — the month
  18. fork — to eat 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