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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 124 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. can — a tin
  3. fork — in a road
  4. court — for sport
  5. saw — the tool
  6. court — of a king
  7. squash — the sport
  8. wound — an injury
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. row — a line
  11. can — to be able to
  12. saw — the tool
  13. row — to paddle
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. squash — to crush
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. can — a tin
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. court — of law
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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