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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 120 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stock — goods
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. fork — in a road
  6. content — the amount
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — a law
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. spell — letters
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. stock — shares
  16. spell — magic
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. pitch — completely
  19. rule — government
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. content — happy
  23. rush — hurry
  24. spell — a short time

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