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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 · can · lean · wake · charge · rush · game · march

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. charge — electricity
  7. fork — in a road
  8. march — the month
  9. march — the month
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. charge — in control
  13. game — a match
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. march — music
  17. lean — thin
  18. charge — a price
  19. can — a tin
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. can — to be able to
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. game — wild animals
  24. wake — a trail

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