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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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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: fork · row · cabinet · trunk · pound · suit · straw · saw

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. saw — the tool
  4. suit — to fit
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. fork — in a road
  12. row — a line
  13. suit — in cards
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. suit — clothes
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. saw — the tool
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. pound — a weight
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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