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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: march · row · plane · snap · content · pop · fork · fan

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. 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. pop — music
  2. march — the month
  3. plane — a tool
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. snap — to click
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pop — soda
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. march — music
  10. pop — to visit
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. content — happy
  16. content — the amount
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. row — to paddle
  21. march — the month
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. row — a line
  24. 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