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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. last — to go on
  4. rule — government
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. pound — a weight
  8. squash — the sport
  9. last — finally
  10. fork — in a road
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. pop — soda
  14. roll — a cake
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. roll — a list
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. pop — music
  20. last — final
  21. rule — a law
  22. squash — to crush
  23. pop — to visit
  24. roll — on a roll

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