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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: cabinet · bound · mine · fork · march · shower · object · plane

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bound — tied together
  3. mine — for digging
  4. shower — to wash
  5. shower — rain
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. object — to protest
  8. march — the month
  9. object — an aim
  10. fork — in a road
  11. object — a thing
  12. bound — obliged
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bound — certain
  16. plane — a tool
  17. march — music
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. march — the month
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. cabinet — ministers

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