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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: spell · press · file · fork · land · bound · roll · pop

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. roll — a list
  4. roll — a cake
  5. pop — to visit
  6. land — ground
  7. fork — in a road
  8. spell — magic
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. press — a publisher
  11. file — a tool
  12. land — to come down
  13. file — a line of people
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bound — certain
  16. spell — letters
  17. bound — obliged
  18. spell — a short time
  19. pop — music
  20. press — to push
  21. pop — soda
  22. file — a document
  23. land — a country
  24. roll — on a roll

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