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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bat — the animal
  3. fork — in a road
  4. club — a group
  5. bank — of a river
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. bank — for money
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pit — in a race
  13. game — a match
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. march — music
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. pit — a hole
  18. club — for dancing
  19. march — the month
  20. club — for golf
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. march — the month
  23. bank — for money
  24. game — wild animals

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