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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: fall · mouse · fork · bat · ball · net · kid · bear

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. ball — a great time
  4. net — after costs
  5. fall — the season
  6. net — in sport
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bear — the animal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. net — for catching
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. kid — child
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. fork — in a road
  18. kid — to tease
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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