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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bound — obliged
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. content — the amount
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. bound — tied together
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bound — certain
  16. content — happy
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. date — the fruit
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fork — in a road
  24. sharp — clever

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