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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. fork — in a road
  3. spell — magic
  4. face — to point toward
  5. spring — a coil
  6. face — to confront
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. spring — of water
  9. spell — letters
  10. band — a music group
  11. chip — for betting
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. spring — the season
  14. face — part of the head
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. chip — to eat
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. saw — the tool
  20. band — a ring
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. spell — a short time
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. saw — the tool

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