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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. wake — a trail
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. hand — in cards
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. roll — a cake
  11. hand — help
  12. board — to get on
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. board — a committee
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. capital — money
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. dip — to sink
  20. capital — a city
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. roll — a list
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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