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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — a practice
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. fork — in a road
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. drill — army training
  8. court — of a king
  9. hand — in cards
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. kid — child
  14. scale — in music
  15. squash — to crush
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hand — help
  19. squash — the sport
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. court — of law
  22. court — for sport
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. kid — to tease

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