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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fork — in a road
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. cold — an illness
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. degree — temperature
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. degree — from a university
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bark — to shout
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. cold — not warm
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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