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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. root — of a word
  3. rush — hurry
  4. row — a line
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. chest — a box
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. track — to keep track
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. root — of a plant
  17. track — a path
  18. chest — of your body
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. fork — in a road
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. root — the cause
  24. track — a song

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