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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 116 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. bat — the animal
  6. scale — in music
  7. stem — to come from
  8. board — a committee
  9. bass — the fish
  10. board — to get on
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. kick — in football
  13. bass — low music
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. root — of a word
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. root — the cause
  21. scale — size or range
  22. fork — in a road
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bat — in an idiom

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