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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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. hand — in cards
  3. prune — to trim
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. court — for sport
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. degree — from a university
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. degree — temperature
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. tear — from crying
  20. hand — help
  21. prune — to trim
  22. court — of law
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. court — of a king

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