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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: patient · stick · straw · net · sharp · fork · board · trunk

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. net — after costs
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. board — to get on
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. board — a committee
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. fork — in a road
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. patient — a sick person

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