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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. scale — in music
  3. mate — a partner
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. mate — to breed
  6. tear — to rip
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. tear — from crying
  13. branch — a division
  14. scale — size or range
  15. key — in music
  16. saw — the tool
  17. tear — from crying
  18. saw — the tool
  19. key — the most important part
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. key — for a lock
  23. mate — a friend
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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