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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. field — farmland
  3. wind — moving air
  4. field — a subject
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. suit — in cards
  7. tube — a container
  8. field — for sport
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wind — moving air
  11. hand — in cards
  12. fork — in a road
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — a break
  16. object — a thing
  17. rest — what's left
  18. tube — the underground
  19. suit — to fit
  20. object — an aim
  21. suit — clothes
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. object — to protest
  24. hand — part of the body

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