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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. bark — to shout
  4. squash — the sport
  5. net — for catching
  6. drill — army training
  7. band — a music group
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. drill — a practice
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bore — to drill
  14. drill — the tool
  15. net — after costs
  16. band — a ring
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bore — to tire
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — to crush
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. net — in sport

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