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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. dip — to sink
  3. club — for golf
  4. fork — in a road
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. last — finally
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. club — for dancing
  14. mate — to breed
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mate — a partner
  17. bat — the animal
  18. club — a group
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. last — final
  21. mate — a friend
  22. kick — in football
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. fork — to eat with

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