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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. squash — the sport
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. press — to push
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. can — a tin
  8. fork — in a road
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. can — a tin
  12. squash — to crush
  13. vault — a safe
  14. press — a publisher
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. band — a ring
  19. can — to be able to
  20. press — newspapers
  21. kid — child
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. date — the fruit

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