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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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Word bank
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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: game · scale · stick · sharp · bowl · land · wound · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. scale — size or range
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. land — ground
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. fork — in a road
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. game — a match
  11. game — wild animals
  12. land — to come down
  13. sharp — clever
  14. land — a country
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. wound — an injury
  18. scale — in music
  19. wound — an injury
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. bowl — to roll

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