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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: game · band · fork · chest · coach · craft · wound · bear

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. band — a ring
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. band — a music group
  6. wound — an injury
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. chest — a box
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. craft — boats
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bear — the animal
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. game — wild animals
  18. craft — a skill
  19. bear — the animal
  20. chest — of your body
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. chest — of your body
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. game — a match

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