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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. hand — help
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. can — a tin
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. drill — a practice
  7. field — farmland
  8. drill — the tool
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. tear — to rip
  11. club — a group
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. can — to be able to
  14. field — for sport
  15. tear — from crying
  16. hand — in cards
  17. drill — army training
  18. club — for dancing
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. tear — from crying
  23. field — a subject
  24. club — for golf

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