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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. chest — a box
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. shower — rain
  5. chest — of your body
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — the fruit
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. kick — in football
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — a weight
  15. fork — in a road
  16. rush — hurry
  17. chest — of your body
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bear — the animal
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — to put up with

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