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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: fork · file · mine · calf · bass · toast · mark · present

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. present — there
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. bass — low music
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. present — a gift
  12. mine — for digging
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. file — a document
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. present — the time now
  19. fork — in a road
  20. toast — bread
  21. file — a tool
  22. bass — the fish
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mark — a trace

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