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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. wound — an injury
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — high quality
  8. present — the time now
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. date — the fruit
  15. present — a gift
  16. present — there
  17. fork — in a road
  18. wound — an injury
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. race — humankind
  22. sharp — clever
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. race — the arms race

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