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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. cap — of ice
  7. pitch — completely
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. land — to come down
  11. season — of the year
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. land — ground
  14. cap — a lid
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wind — moving air
  19. season — in sport
  20. cap — a hat
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. fork — in a road
  23. land — a country
  24. leaves — of a tree

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