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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mate — a friend
  5. game — wild animals
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — in music
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. fine — high quality
  11. mate — a partner
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. sharp — clever
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fine — all right
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. court — of a king
  20. fork — in a road
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. nail — for a hammer

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