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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. perch — the fish
  3. mate — a partner
  4. row — a line
  5. suit — in cards
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. mate — to breed
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. capital — a city
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. suit — clothes
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. fork — in a road
  14. charge — a price
  15. charge — electricity
  16. row — to paddle
  17. suit — to fit
  18. mate — a friend
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. capital — money
  22. charge — in control
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. cold — not warm

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