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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 116 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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. 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. fork — to eat with
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bear — the animal
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bear — the animal
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. season — in sport
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. season — of the year
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. 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