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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: kid · fork · tear · craft · wave · wake · chair · spring

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. tear — to rip
  4. fork — in a road
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. spring — the season
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. craft — a skill
  11. kid — child
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. spring — a coil
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. kid — to tease
  22. craft — boats
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. craft — a handicraft

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