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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: row · march · sharp · temple · fork · wound · bound · hand

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. sharp — clever
  3. hand — in cards
  4. row — to paddle
  5. march — the month
  6. hand — help
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bound — tied together
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — certain
  16. march — music
  17. row — a line
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. march — the month

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