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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — there
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. can — to be able to
  9. can — a tin
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. can — a tin
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. present — the time now
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. deal — to handle
  17. bear — the animal
  18. fork — in a road
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. pound — a weight
  22. hand — in cards
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bear — the animal

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