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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. bear — the animal
  3. game — a match
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. row — a line
  6. deal — to handle
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. row — to paddle
  14. fork — in a road
  15. chest — of your body
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. game — wild animals
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bear — the animal
  24. mine — for digging

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