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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: band · last · mark · fork · cue · lie · kid · root

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. last — final
  5. root — of a word
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. fork — in a road
  8. mark — a grade
  9. kid — to tease
  10. lie — to recline
  11. root — of a plant
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. kid — child
  14. cue — a signal
  15. band — a ring
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. root — the cause
  19. cue — a hint
  20. cue — for pool
  21. last — finally
  22. mark — a trace
  23. last — to go on
  24. fork — to eat with

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