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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. mate — a partner
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. plane — a tool
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. mate — to breed
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bark — to shout
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. foot — a measure
  17. roll — a cake
  18. roll — a list
  19. fork — in a road
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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