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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. spring — the season
  3. pitch — completely
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. fork — in a road
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. game — wild animals
  13. sharp — clever
  14. plane — a tool
  15. game — a match
  16. lean — to bend
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. lean — thin
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — of water
  24. fork — to eat with

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