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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bulb — for light
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. march — the month
  10. fork — in a road
  11. march — music
  12. bulb — for light
  13. face — part of the head
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. march — the month
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cold — not warm
  20. face — to confront
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. face — to point toward
  24. bulb — of a plant

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