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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 116 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: wave · mate · court · race · fork · bark

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  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 — a garden tool
  2. race — a contest
  3. bark — to shout
  4. court — for sport
  5. race — humankind
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. race — the arms race
  8. mate — a partner
  9. court — of law
  10. fork — in a road
  11. court — of a king
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. mate — to breed
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. mate — a friend
  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