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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. fork — in a road
  6. saw — the tool
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. spell — magic
  9. pass — a permit
  10. spell — a short time
  11. capital — money
  12. spell — letters
  13. wake — a trail
  14. chest — a box
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. chest — of your body
  24. racket — a loud noise

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