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

Word bank: tear · ruler · rock · court · fine · kick · fork · cell

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. court — of a king
  6. rock — music
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fine — all right
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. tear — from crying
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. cell — a phone
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. tear — to rip
  15. fork — in a road
  16. court — of law
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cell — in biology
  19. rock — a stone
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. cell — in a prison

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