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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: rock · drill · perch · fork · can · band · stand · cold

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. perch — the fish
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. can — to be able to
  5. drill — a practice
  6. cold — an illness
  7. fork — in a road
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. rock — a stone
  13. can — a tin
  14. stand — to bear
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. cold — not warm
  18. rock — music
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. can — a tin
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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