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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. court — of a king
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. tear — from crying
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. fine — all right
  9. fork — in a road
  10. scale — in music
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. tear — to rip
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. pitch — completely
  16. tear — from crying
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. fine — high quality
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. fork — to eat with

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