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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: racket · object · plane · row · wake · land · straw · fork

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. row — to paddle
  3. plane — a tool
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — a country
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — a thing
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. row — a line
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. object — an aim
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. fork — in a road

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