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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: fork · cold · swing · rash · wake · last · date · cabinet

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rash — a series
  4. swing — in golf
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. wake — a trail
  7. last — finally
  8. cold — not warm
  9. rash — hasty
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. swing — music
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. swing — to play on
  19. last — final
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. date — the fruit
  23. last — to go on
  24. fork — in a road

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