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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. row — a line
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bear — the animal
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. hand — help
  8. kick — in football
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. hand — in cards
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. row — to paddle
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. vault — a safe
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. fork — in a road
  22. prune — to trim
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. prune — to trim

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