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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 116 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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. fork — in a road
  3. march — the month
  4. spring — the season
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. key — in music
  7. key — for a lock
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. field — for sport
  10. spring — of water
  11. field — farmland
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. march — the month
  15. key — the most important part
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. spring — a coil
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. march — music
  22. field — a subject
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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