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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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. bore — to tire
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — rain
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. bore — to drill
  14. spell — magic
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — for paper
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — for sport
  19. pit — a hole
  20. clip — a video
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. spell — letters
  24. field — a subject

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