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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. tear — to rip
  3. suit — in cards
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. game — a match
  6. field — a subject
  7. suit — clothes
  8. scale — in music
  9. object — a thing
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. object — an aim
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. game — wild animals
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. fork — in a road
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. field — for sport
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — a measure
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. object — to protest
  24. field — farmland

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