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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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. hand — in cards
  6. face — part of the head
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. face — to point toward
  9. chip — for betting
  10. chip — to eat
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. spell — letters
  14. root — of a word
  15. hand — help
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. band — a ring
  18. wound — an injury
  19. root — the cause
  20. band — a music group
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. spell — magic
  23. face — to confront
  24. root — of a plant

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