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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. present — the time now
  5. cap — a hat
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. lean — to bend
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. fork — in a road
  12. content — happy
  13. wake — a trail
  14. present — a gift
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — the fruit
  17. present — there
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — the amount
  22. cap — a lid
  23. cap — of ice
  24. lean — thin

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