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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. plane — a tool
  5. staff — employees
  6. mug — to rob
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. staff — employees
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. fork — in a road
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. mug — a face
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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