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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: bank · hand · wave · chip · fork · key · perch · file

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. key — the most important part
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bank — for money
  7. bank — for money
  8. key — for a lock
  9. file — a tool
  10. hand — help
  11. file — a document
  12. hand — in cards
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. perch — the fish
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. fork — in a road
  21. bank — of a river
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. key — in music
  24. file — a line of people

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