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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. squash — the sport
  3. fall — the season
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. ground — crushed
  6. can — a tin
  7. fall — to drop
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. can — a tin
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. ground — a position
  12. row — a line
  13. squash — to crush
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. can — to be able to
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. ground — the earth
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. fork — in a road
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. fall — to drop
  24. row — to paddle

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