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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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. last — final
  4. last — finally
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. club — for dancing
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. fork — in a road
  17. field — farmland
  18. content — the amount
  19. last — to go on
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. club — for golf
  23. club — a group
  24. content — happy

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