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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: spell · chest · plane · file · nail · spring · cue · fork

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. plane — a tool
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. chest — a box
  9. spell — letters
  10. chest — of your body
  11. spring — of water
  12. spell — magic
  13. spring — a coil
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cue — for pool
  16. spell — a short time
  17. file — a tool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. file — a document
  21. fork — in a road
  22. chest — of your body
  23. cue — a hint
  24. file — a line of people

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