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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. fork — in a road
  4. present — there
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. present — a gift
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. present — the time now
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. dip — to sink
  14. plane — a tool
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. bat — the animal
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cell — in biology
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. rash — a series

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