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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: stock · cold · fork · fan · bore · bear · mine · sharp

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. stock — goods
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bore — to tire
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. sharp — clever
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. cold — not warm
  15. stock — shares
  16. mine — for digging
  17. bore — to drill
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. stock — a soup base

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