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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. hand — help
  3. lean — to bend
  4. scale — size or range
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. fork — in a road
  7. scale — in music
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hand — in cards
  11. pass — a permit
  12. file — a document
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. lean — thin
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. bowl — a dish

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