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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 116 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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. sharp — clever
  5. drill — the tool
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. tear — to rip
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. tear — from crying
  10. staff — a stick
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. row — to paddle
  13. tear — from crying
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. drill — army training
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. staff — employees
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. drill — a practice
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. dip — to sink
  22. staff — employees
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. row — a line

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