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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. kid — child
  4. net — in sport
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a ring
  10. kid — to tease
  11. net — after costs
  12. hand — help
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. net — for catching
  15. rule — government
  16. hand — in cards
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chair — a leader
  19. present — there
  20. present — the time now
  21. rule — a law
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. present — a gift
  24. rule — to rule out

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