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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. fork — in a road
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. court — of a king
  10. wound — an injury
  11. cold — an illness
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. court — of law
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. wound — an injury
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. roll — a list
  19. roll — a cake
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. court — for sport
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chip — for betting
  24. cold — not warm

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