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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. track — a song
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. court — for sport
  6. track — a path
  7. bulb — for light
  8. face — part of the head
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. chair — a leader
  11. court — of a king
  12. track — to keep track
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. court — of law
  16. content — happy
  17. face — to confront
  18. fork — in a road
  19. bulb — for light
  20. content — the amount
  21. face — to point toward
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. dip — to sink
  24. content — videos and posts

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