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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: track · wave · rock · cell · fork · wound · mark · clip

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. rock — music
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. wound — an injury
  6. cell — a phone
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. fork — in a road
  12. track — a path
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. track — a song
  15. rock — a stone
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wound — an injury
  20. clip — a video
  21. track — to keep track
  22. mark — a trace
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. mark — a grade

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