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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. press — a publisher
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. press — to push
  6. bulb — for light
  7. sharp — clever
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bulb — for light
  10. root — the cause
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. current — of water
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. root — of a plant
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — electric
  20. fork — in a road
  21. press — newspapers
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. root — of a word

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