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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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. lie — to recline
  3. squash — the sport
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. capital — a city
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. ground — the earth
  14. squash — to crush
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. capital — money
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. fork — in a road
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. ground — a position
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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