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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. ground — a position
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. present — the time now
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fork — in a road
  9. spell — letters
  10. present — a gift
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bore — to tire
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. spell — magic
  17. ground — the earth
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. spell — a short time
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bore — to drill
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. march — the month
  24. ground — crushed

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