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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. field — a subject
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pit — in a race
  8. charge — electricity
  9. field — farmland
  10. fall — to drop
  11. charge — in control
  12. fall — the season
  13. charge — a price
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. pit — a hole
  17. fork — in a road
  18. field — for sport
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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