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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. key — for a lock
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. ground — crushed
  11. ground — a position
  12. fork — in a road
  13. key — the most important part
  14. snap — to click
  15. ground — the earth
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. key — in music
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. ruler — for measuring

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