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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. dip — to sink
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. ground — a position
  5. fork — in a road
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — army training
  8. ground — crushed
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. court — of a king
  14. pit — in a race
  15. game — a match
  16. ground — the earth
  17. court — for sport
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. game — wild animals
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. court — of law
  24. pit — a hole

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