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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 120 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: sharp · fork · land · perch · clip · field · pass · club

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. sharp — clever
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. clip — a video
  5. club — a group
  6. land — a country
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. club — for golf
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. field — for sport
  12. pass — a permit
  13. clip — to cut
  14. field — farmland
  15. perch — the fish
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. clip — for paper
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. club — for dancing
  22. land — to come down
  23. field — a subject
  24. land — ground

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