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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. drill — army training
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — not warm
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. fork — in a road
  9. cold — an illness
  10. content — the amount
  11. drill — the tool
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bulb — for light
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. content — happy
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. race — a contest
  18. bulb — for light
  19. ball — a dance
  20. drill — a practice
  21. race — humankind
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. ball — a great time

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