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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: saw · bound · mark · clip · trunk · track · fork · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. season — of the year
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — a trace
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bound — tied together
  11. track — a path
  12. bound — certain
  13. track — to keep track
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. clip — a video
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. season — in sport
  22. track — a song
  23. bound — obliged
  24. fork — a garden tool

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