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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. spring — a coil
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. capital — money
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. ball — a great time
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. capital — a city
  17. spring — the season
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. kick — in football
  20. fork — in a road
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. foot — a measure
  24. spring — of water

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