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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 116 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: stick · fork · row · chair · present · bore · wind · rash

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. fork — in a road
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. chair — a leader
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bore — to tire
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. present — a gift
  15. row — a line
  16. present — there
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. wind — moving air
  20. present — the time now
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bore — to drill
  24. row — to paddle

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