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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. game — a match
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — in a road
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. suit — clothes
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. clip — a video
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. drill — the tool
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. drill — army training
  23. game — wild animals
  24. suit — to fit

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