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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. capital — money
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wound — an injury
  6. swing — to play on
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — a position
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. mark — a trace
  11. swing — music
  12. wound — an injury
  13. swing — in golf
  14. capital — a city
  15. wax — to grow
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. ground — the earth
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mark — a grade
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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