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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. root — of a word
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. lie — to recline
  11. band — a music group
  12. file — a document
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. fork — in a road
  16. band — a ring
  17. plane — a tool
  18. file — a tool
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. root — the cause
  21. file — a line of people
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. root — of a plant
  24. straw — a straw man

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