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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.

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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. 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. fine — a penalty
  2. spell — letters
  3. fine — high quality
  4. spell — a short time
  5. kid — to tease
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. spell — magic
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fine — all right
  11. root — of a word
  12. root — of a plant
  13. content — the amount
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. root — the cause
  16. content — happy
  17. kid — child
  18. 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