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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. stock — goods
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. fork — in a road
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. shower — rain
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a tool
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. stock — shares
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. file — a line of people
  18. shower — to wash

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