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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. tube — a container
  5. land — ground
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — army training
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. tube — the underground
  13. rush — hurry
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. fork — in a road
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. deal — to handle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  24. foot — a measure

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