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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bore — to drill
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bass — low music
  7. bat — the animal
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bound — certain
  15. root — of a word
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. root — of a plant
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bass — the fish
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bound — obliged
  24. root — the cause

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