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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. deal — to handle
  7. swing — to play on
  8. net — for catching
  9. chest — of your body
  10. fork — in a road
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. chip — for betting
  15. net — in sport
  16. swing — music
  17. swing — in golf
  18. wake — a trail
  19. chest — a box
  20. chip — to eat
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. net — after costs
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. chest — of your body

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