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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. degree — an amount
  6. hand — in cards
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. ball — a great time
  9. degree — from a university
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. hand — help
  13. ball — a dance
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. fork — in a road
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. safe — a strongbox

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