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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: bound · racket · fork · plane · cell · mine · present · wake

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. wake — a trail
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — obliged
  11. present — a gift
  12. bound — tied together
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. cell — in biology
  17. fork — in a road
  18. plane — a tool
  19. cell — a phone
  20. present — there
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. present — the time now
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. racket — for tennis

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