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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. cap — a hat
  3. chest — of your body
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. drill — a practice
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. shower — rain
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fork — in a road
  10. drill — army training
  11. cap — of ice
  12. foot — a measure
  13. cap — a lid
  14. chest — a box
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. shower — to wash
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. drill — the tool
  24. foot — part of the body

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