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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 116 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: rock · press · file · fork · pit · tear · wave · land

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. rock — music
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pit — a hole
  6. file — a tool
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a line of people
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. land — ground
  12. rock — a stone
  13. land — to come down
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. pit — in a race
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. fork — in a road
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. press — to push
  22. press — a publisher
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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