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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. fork — in a road
  4. mate — a friend
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — in music
  7. kick — in football
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. squash — the sport
  14. key — the most important part
  15. mate — to breed
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. squash — to crush
  18. march — music
  19. cold — not warm
  20. mate — a partner
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. march — the month
  23. cold — an illness
  24. march — the month

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