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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. snap — to click
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. mate — a friend
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. shower — rain
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. charge — a price
  11. chair — a leader
  12. shower — to wash
  13. fork — in a road
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mate — to breed
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. charge — electricity
  20. fall — the season
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. charge — in control
  23. mate — a partner
  24. fall — to drop

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