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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — child
  6. ground — crushed
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — the most important part
  10. pound — a weight
  11. squash — to crush
  12. ground — the earth
  13. fork — in a road
  14. ground — a position
  15. squash — the sport
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. key — in music
  22. content — happy
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. content — the amount

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