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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.

Make a worksheet

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: mate · craft · pitcher · drill · fan · fork · clip · march

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. march — the month
  3. mate — to breed
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. march — music
  8. clip — a video
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — army training
  11. craft — a skill
  12. mate — a partner
  13. craft — boats
  14. fork — in a road
  15. clip — for paper
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. march — the month
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. drill — a practice
  24. fan — a supporter

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