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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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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: pop · fork · spell · fall · bank · craft · mine · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. bank — for money
  4. craft — a skill
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rest — what's left
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. craft — boats
  10. mine — for digging
  11. pop — soda
  12. spell — magic
  13. fork — in a road
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. pop — to visit
  17. rest — what's left
  18. spell — letters
  19. bank — for money
  20. spell — a short time
  21. bank — of a river
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. fall — to drop
  24. pop — music

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