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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 116 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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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: rock · present · drill · tube · chair · fork · perch · key

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — the underground
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. key — for a lock
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. present — there
  11. perch — the fish
  12. key — the most important part
  13. rock — music
  14. drill — army training
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rock — a stone
  18. chair — a leader
  19. present — a gift
  20. drill — the tool
  21. present — the time now
  22. key — in music
  23. drill — a practice
  24. tube — in a tire

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