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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 usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. file — a tool
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. snap — to click
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. file — a line of people
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. file — a document
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. content — the amount
  23. fork — in a road
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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