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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. degree — from a university
  3. cold — not warm
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. degree — an amount
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. fork — in a road
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. fine — high quality
  14. dip — to sink
  15. fine — all right
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. cold — an illness
  18. saw — the tool
  19. degree — temperature
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. saw — the tool
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. lie — to recline

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