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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 120 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. file — a line of people
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fork — in a road
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. pass — a permit
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. hand — help
  13. present — a gift
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. file — a tool
  16. file — a document
  17. present — there
  18. scale — in music
  19. present — the time now
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. hand — part of the body

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