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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. wax — to grow
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. season — of the year
  8. net — after costs
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. present — the time now
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. present — a gift
  16. present — there
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. fork — in a road
  22. season — in sport
  23. content — the amount
  24. hide — to keep secret

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