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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.

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: sharp · fork · wound · coach · straw · spell · fall · march

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fall — the season
  4. spell — magic
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. fall — to drop
  8. march — the month
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. march — the month
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wound — an injury
  13. fork — in a road
  14. spell — letters
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — clever
  21. march — music
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wound — an injury
  24. straw — dry grass

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