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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spring · game · wake · cabinet · fork · date · mate · wind

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. wake — a trail
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. mate — a partner
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. game — a match
  13. mate — a friend
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. game — wild animals
  16. date — the fruit
  17. spring — the season
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mate — to breed
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — of water
  23. fork — in a road
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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