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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 116 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: file · bowl · lash · present · trunk · wind · ground · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. ground — a position
  3. file — a document
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. file — a tool
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. present — there
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. wind — moving air
  12. ground — crushed
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. wind — moving air
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. present — a gift
  19. ground — the earth
  20. file — a line of people
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. fork — in a road
  23. present — the time now
  24. bowl — to roll

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