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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · fall · bear · fork · bat · kick

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bat — the animal
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fall — the season
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. fork — a garden tool

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