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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: fork · stock · march · snap · row · coach · wake · bound

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. march — the month
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. row — to paddle
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. stock — shares
  13. march — the month
  14. row — a line
  15. stock — goods
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to click
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. fork — in a road
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — certain
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. march — music
  24. wake — before a funeral

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