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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. key — the most important part
  3. plane — a tool
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. current — happening now
  6. current — of water
  7. capital — a city
  8. snap — to click
  9. key — for a lock
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. capital — money
  13. fork — in a road
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. hand — help
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. key — in music
  20. hand — in cards
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. current — electric
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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