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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 120 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: board · mug · net · fork · stick · trunk · perch · cell

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. mug — a cup
  3. net — in sport
  4. perch — the fish
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. board — a committee
  7. cell — a phone
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. mug — a face
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. net — after costs
  18. mug — to rob
  19. board — to get on
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. cell — in biology
  24. net — for catching

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