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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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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. rock — a stone
  4. degree — from a university
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. shower — rain
  8. chip — to eat
  9. fork — in a road
  10. degree — temperature
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. present — a gift
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. rock — music
  16. shower — to wash
  17. present — there
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. degree — an amount
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. present — the time now
  24. chip — for betting

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