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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a dance
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — a phone
  7. key — in music
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. key — for a lock
  15. row — a line
  16. fork — in a road
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. ball — a great time
  19. kick — in football
  20. row — to paddle
  21. scale — in music
  22. key — the most important part
  23. scale — size or range
  24. kick — with a leg

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