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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: hand · board · fork · rest · land · prune · arm · vault

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. hand — in cards
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. land — to come down
  7. prune — to trim
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. rest — what's left
  12. board — to get on
  13. board — a committee
  14. land — ground
  15. rest — a break
  16. hand — help
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. vault — a safe
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. land — a country

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