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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 116 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. sharp — clever
  3. fork — in a road
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — to sink
  8. hand — help
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bank — for money
  13. bank — of a river
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. content — happy
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. game — a match
  20. bank — for money
  21. content — the amount
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. fall — to drop

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