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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chest · fork · plane · stock · board · wave · roll · mine

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  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. fork — to eat with
  2. chest — of your body
  3. roll — a list
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — for digging
  7. board — to get on
  8. chest — a box
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. chest — of your body
  11. board — a committee
  12. stock — goods
  13. plane — a tool
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. roll — a cake
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. stock — shares
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. fork — in a road
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  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