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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: arm · fork · saw · spring · mark · chair · club · rash

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. club — for golf
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. club — a group
  12. mark — a grade
  13. fork — in a road
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — hasty
  16. chair — a leader
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. spring — a coil
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. club — for dancing
  21. spring — the season
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mark — a trace
  24. rash — on the skin

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