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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. ground — a position
  4. file — a document
  5. fork — in a road
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a match
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. ground — the earth
  11. file — a tool
  12. stand — to bear
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. file — a line of people
  15. court — for sport
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. perch — the fish
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. court — of law
  22. ground — crushed
  23. court — of a king
  24. mark — a grade

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