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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. mark — a grade
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. craft — boats
  8. fork — in a road
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. game — wild animals
  13. craft — a skill
  14. sharp — clever
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. mark — a trace
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. game — a match
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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