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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. rash — hasty
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bound — certain
  9. bound — obliged
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. snap — to click
  15. rash — a series
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bat — the animal
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. rash — on the skin

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