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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.

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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: saw · race · bank · fork · perch · wake · chest · hide

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. chest — of your body
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. perch — the fish
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bank — for money
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. race — a contest
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — of a river
  17. chest — of your body
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — a trail
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. chest — a box
  22. race — the arms race
  23. saw — the tool
  24. race — humankind

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