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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: wind · fall · ball · spring · fork · object · chair · mate

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. fork — in a road
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. mate — a partner
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. fall — to drop
  9. object — an aim
  10. object — a thing
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fall — to drop
  13. object — to protest
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. ball — a great time
  17. wind — moving air
  18. ball — a dance
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. spring — the season
  21. fall — the season
  22. mate — to breed
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. mate — a friend

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