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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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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: fork · fine · squash · clip · field · bound · craft · date

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. field — for sport
  4. squash — to crush
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. field — farmland
  7. bound — certain
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. craft — boats
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. squash — the sport
  14. field — a subject
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bound — tied together
  18. date — the fruit
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. clip — a video
  22. fine — all right
  23. craft — a skill
  24. clip — for paper

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