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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. fork — in a road
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — to breed
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. mate — a friend
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. scale — in music
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. sharp — clever
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. rush — hurry
  18. cold — not warm
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. cold — an illness
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. plane — a tool

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