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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. swing — music
  4. fall — the season
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. swing — in golf
  7. bound — obliged
  8. tear — to rip
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. tear — from crying
  11. swing — to play on
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. foot — a measure
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. bound — certain
  16. bat — the animal
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — to drop
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bound — tied together
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. fork — in a road
  24. foot — the bottom

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