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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
468
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: perch · press · drill · board · land · rock · hand · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. hand — help
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. drill — a practice
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. board — to get on
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. board — a committee
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. press — to push
  12. rock — a stone
  13. land — a country
  14. press — a publisher
  15. press — newspapers
  16. hand — in cards
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. rock — music
  19. drill — army training
  20. fork — in a road
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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