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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. kick — in football
  5. file — a tool
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. file — a document
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. file — a line of people
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. face — part of the head
  18. pound — a weight
  19. face — to point toward
  20. bat — the animal
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. face — to confront
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. fork — in a road

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