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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bass — the fish
  3. lean — to bend
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fork — in a road
  6. bass — low music
  7. spring — a coil
  8. perch — the fish
  9. spring — of water
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. kick — in football
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. lean — thin
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — to push
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. spring — the season
  24. press — newspapers

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