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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. face — to confront
  4. swing — in golf
  5. date — the fruit
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. craft — boats
  9. fork — in a road
  10. face — part of the head
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a tool
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. craft — a skill
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. face — to point toward
  24. calf — of the leg

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