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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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. toast — bread
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. face — part of the head
  6. cold — not warm
  7. band — a music group
  8. capital — a city
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. drill — army training
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. drill — a practice
  14. capital — money
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. face — to confront
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. band — a ring
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. face — to point toward
  23. drill — the tool
  24. fork — to eat with

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