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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — for digging
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. rash — a series
  13. fork — in a road
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. sharp — clever
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. pop — music
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. pop — soda
  21. pitch — completely
  22. last — finally
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. mine — an explosive

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