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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. net — in sport
  5. file — a tool
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. cell — in biology
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. cell — a phone
  13. file — a document
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. net — after costs
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. fork — in a road
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. net — for catching
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. file — a line of people

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