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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. field — a subject
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. shower — rain
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. sharp — clever
  17. kick — in football
  18. field — farmland
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. shower — to wash
  21. fork — in a road
  22. field — for sport
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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