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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. root — the cause
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. root — of a word
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. kid — to tease
  11. rule — a law
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. fork — in a road
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. rule — government
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. kid — child
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. root — of a plant
  24. hand — in cards

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