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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. present — the time now
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. field — a subject
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. present — a gift
  13. field — farmland
  14. fork — in a road
  15. kick — in football
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. scale — size or range
  18. wake — a trail
  19. scale — in music
  20. present — there
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. field — for sport

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