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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 120 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: chip · prune · land · fan · straw · sharp · rush · fork

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. rush — hurry
  4. land — ground
  5. chip — to eat
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. prune — to trim
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. sharp — clever
  13. land — to come down
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. fork — in a road
  16. land — a country
  17. prune — to trim
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — to cool the air

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