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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 usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. bass — low music
  6. bore — to drill
  7. march — music
  8. rule — a law
  9. rule — government
  10. court — of law
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. bass — the fish
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — for sport
  18. fork — in a road
  19. hand — help
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. hand — in cards
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. jam — a tight spot

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