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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 116 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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. fork — in a road
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fall — to drop
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. squash — to crush
  20. sharp — clever
  21. pass — a permit
  22. fall — the season
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fall — to drop

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