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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rock — music
  4. wound — an injury
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fine — high quality
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. fine — all right
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. last — finally
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. wound — an injury
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. last — final
  19. foot — a measure
  20. rock — a stone
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. last — to go on
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. fork — in a road

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