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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pop — soda
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. hand — help
  7. stand — to bear
  8. plane — a tool
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pop — to visit
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. pop — music
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. fork — in a road
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. sharp — clever
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. sharp — with an edge

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