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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. pit — a hole
  5. deal — to handle
  6. game — a match
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — the cause
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — hasty
  16. pit — in a race
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. root — of a plant
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. fork — in a road
  23. hand — in cards
  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