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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. ground — crushed
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. craft — boats
  7. fork — in a road
  8. plane — a tool
  9. shower — rain
  10. ground — a position
  11. craft — a skill
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. current — electric
  15. shower — to wash
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. current — of water
  20. ground — the earth
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. current — happening now
  23. root — the cause
  24. craft — a handicraft

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