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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 116 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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bound — obliged
  3. clip — for paper
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. suit — in cards
  6. face — to confront
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bound — certain
  9. bound — tied together
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. fork — in a road
  12. face — part of the head
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pit — in a race
  16. clip — a video
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. face — to point toward
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. suit — clothes
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. suit — to fit
  23. pit — a hole
  24. kick — in football

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