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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: bore · fork · rock · clip · row · march · nail · mark

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. mark — a grade
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. mark — a trace
  6. march — the month
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. march — music
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — to paddle
  11. rock — music
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. clip — for paper
  14. row — a line
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. clip — a video
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bore — to drill
  21. fork — in a road
  22. bore — to tire
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. rock — a stone

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