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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. squash — the sport
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. pit — in a race
  8. ground — the earth
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. press — a publisher
  11. ground — a position
  12. court — of a king
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. press — newspapers
  15. pit — a hole
  16. court — for sport
  17. plane — a tool
  18. squash — to crush
  19. fork — in a road
  20. press — to push
  21. court — of law
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. squash — the vegetable
  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