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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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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 · prune · bound · toast · net · bat · patient · deal

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  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. bound — obliged
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. bound — tied together
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. toast — bread
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bat — the animal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. net — for catching
  22. deal — to handle
  23. bound — certain
  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