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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: plane · pound · fork · face · march · craft · sharp · racket

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. face — to point toward
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. face — to confront
  6. march — the month
  7. march — music
  8. pound — a weight
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. craft — a skill
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. sharp — clever
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. face — part of the head
  17. plane — a tool
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. march — the month
  20. fork — in a road
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. craft — boats
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — in geometry

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