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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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. ground — crushed
  3. race — humankind
  4. kid — child
  5. ground — a position
  6. object — to protest
  7. race — the arms race
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. object — an aim
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — for money
  13. bank — of a river
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. ground — the earth
  16. race — a contest
  17. lie — to recline
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. kid — to tease
  21. fork — in a road
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. drill — the tool
  24. object — a thing

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