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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. hand — in cards
  3. cap — of ice
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. file — a tool
  7. bound — certain
  8. hand — help
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. cap — a lid
  13. file — a document
  14. squash — the sport
  15. cap — a hat
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. file — a line of people
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. bat — the animal
  22. fork — in a road
  23. squash — to crush
  24. leaves — of a tree

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