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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bore · game · lie · face · fork · mine · pound · tube

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. face — to confront
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. tube — the underground
  8. pound — a weight
  9. game — a match
  10. lie — to recline
  11. bore — to drill
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. bore — to tire
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. mine — for digging
  16. tube — a container
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. fork — in a road
  19. face — to point toward
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. face — part of the head
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. game — wild animals

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