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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. fork — in a road
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. kid — child
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. snap — to click
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. cap — a hat
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bat — the animal
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cap — a lid
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. cap — of ice
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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