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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 took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. foot — a measure
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. file — a line of people
  6. field — a subject
  7. bear — the animal
  8. stock — shares
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. field — farmland
  12. file — a document
  13. field — for sport
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. fork — in a road
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. bear — the animal
  19. shower — to wash
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. sharp — clever
  22. file — a tool
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — goods

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