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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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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: stick · fork · bass · shower · race · land · trunk · bore

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. shower — to wash
  4. bass — low music
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. fork — in a road
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. land — a country
  10. shower — rain
  11. race — humankind
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bore — to drill
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. race — a contest
  17. land — ground
  18. race — the arms race
  19. land — to come down
  20. bass — the fish
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. bore — to tire
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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