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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. fork — in a road
  4. perch — the fish
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. firm — decided
  8. cold — not warm
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bat — the animal
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. press — newspapers
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. firm — steady
  17. cold — an illness
  18. kick — in football
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. press — to push
  22. firm — a company
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. arm — part of the body

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