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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 120 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 so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. dip — to sink
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. object — a thing
  8. object — to protest
  9. rock — a stone
  10. rock — music
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. cell — in biology
  19. bark — to shout
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. object — an aim
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — the animal
  24. cell — a phone

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