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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. track — to keep track
  4. ground — crushed
  5. hand — in cards
  6. fork — in a road
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. branch — a division
  12. cold — not warm
  13. hand — help
  14. cold — an illness
  15. track — a song
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. squash — to crush
  18. ground — the earth
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. squash — the sport
  21. track — a path
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. ground — a position

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