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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: bear · staff · wave · net · content · pitcher · bound · fork

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. bound — certain
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — a stick
  5. content — happy
  6. content — the amount
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bound — tied together
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bound — obliged
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. net — for catching
  20. fork — in a road
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. net — after costs
  23. staff — employees
  24. wave — of the sea

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