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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. court — of law
  3. band — a ring
  4. court — for sport
  5. board — to get on
  6. cell — in biology
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — thin
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — in a road
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. band — a music group
  14. scale — size or range
  15. board — a committee
  16. scale — in music
  17. lean — to bend
  18. cell — a phone
  19. sharp — clever
  20. court — of a king
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. sharp — exactly

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