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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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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. squash — the sport
  4. fork — in a road
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. foot — a measure
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. squash — to crush
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — a phone
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. root — the cause
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — of a plant
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. tear — from crying

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