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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. march — music
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. fork — in a road
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. last — finally
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. march — the month
  17. last — final
  18. march — the month
  19. sharp — clever
  20. deal — to handle
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. last — to go on
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the sport

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