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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. row — a line
  3. dip — to sink
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wake — a trail
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. row — to paddle
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. game — a match
  16. date — the fruit
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. fork — in a road
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. saw — the tool
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. game — wild animals

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