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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.

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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. kid — child
  4. staff — employees
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. fine — all right
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. field — farmland
  9. charge — electricity
  10. band — a music group
  11. field — a subject
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. charge — a price
  15. fine — high quality
  16. kid — to tease
  17. rush — hurry
  18. staff — a stick
  19. charge — in control
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. staff — employees
  22. field — for sport
  23. fork — in a road
  24. band — a ring

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