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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. kid — child
  6. key — in music
  7. bass — the fish
  8. hand — help
  9. fork — in a road
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. key — for a lock
  12. key — the most important part
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bass — low music
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. hand — in cards

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