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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. ball — a great time
  4. pit — in a race
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. squash — to crush
  8. root — the cause
  9. lean — thin
  10. squash — the sport
  11. kid — to tease
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. ball — a dance
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. pit — a hole
  17. kid — child
  18. march — music
  19. fork — in a road
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. root — of a word
  23. lean — to bend
  24. root — of a plant

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