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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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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: calf · pound · fork · plane · sharp · cap · bark · mine

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. plane — a tool
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. cap — a hat
  7. mine — for digging
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. cap — of ice
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. sharp — clever
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. fork — in a road
  20. cap — a lid
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pound — a weight
  23. bark — to shout
  24. sharp — with an edge

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