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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. key — for a lock
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mate — a friend
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. chair — a leader
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. mate — a partner
  9. key — the most important part
  10. mate — to breed
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. current — happening now
  14. wound — an injury
  15. key — in music
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rash — hasty
  18. current — electric
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. current — of water
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. rash — a series
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. chair — to sit on

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