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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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Word bank
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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: bear · band · hand · capital · present · fork · net · fall

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. present — the time now
  4. hand — help
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fall — to drop
  10. band — a music group
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a ring
  15. present — a gift
  16. capital — a city
  17. bear — the animal
  18. net — for catching
  19. capital — money
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. present — there

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