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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bark — to shout
  4. cue — for pool
  5. squash — to crush
  6. cue — a signal
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. hand — help
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. hand — in cards
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. sharp — clever
  20. race — humankind
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. squash — the sport
  24. bowl — a football final

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