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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. hand — help
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. net — in sport
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. court — of a king
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. net — after costs
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. sharp — clever
  17. court — of law
  18. fork — in a road
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. court — for sport
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. net — for catching
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. hand — in cards

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