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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. hand — in cards
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. saw — the tool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. file — a line of people
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. saw — the tool
  22. kick — in football
  23. fork — in a road
  24. fan — a supporter

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