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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 120 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: arm · tube · wound · leaves · fork · racket · straw · row

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. tube — the underground
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. row — a line
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. wound — an injury
  12. row — to paddle
  13. tube — a container
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. fork — in a road
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. wound — an injury
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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