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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. degree — an amount
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. row — a line
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. fork — in a road
  9. staff — employees
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. rock — music
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. degree — temperature
  17. staff — employees
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. row — to paddle
  22. degree — from a university
  23. staff — a stick
  24. wave — with your hand

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