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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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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: file · march · fork · current · bay · band · chip · rest

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. rest — a break
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a tool
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. fork — in a road
  10. current — happening now
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. file — a line of people
  13. band — a ring
  14. chip — to eat
  15. current — of water
  16. march — the month
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. rest — what's left
  19. march — the month
  20. band — a music group
  21. rest — what's left
  22. march — music
  23. chip — for betting
  24. current — electric

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