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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. lean — thin
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. land — a country
  5. court — of law
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. file — a tool
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. content — happy
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. land — ground
  18. file — a document
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. lean — to bend
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. land — to come down
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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