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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. charge — electricity
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. court — of a king
  7. court — of law
  8. charge — a price
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. fork — in a road
  15. charge — in control
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. scale — in music
  18. court — for sport
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — hurry
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. scale — size or range

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