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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — the tool
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. ball — a dance
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. ball — a great time
  23. wound — an injury
  24. fork — in a road

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