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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: kid · fork · cabinet · ground · rock · snap · court · row

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. court — of a king
  3. rock — music
  4. court — for sport
  5. fork — in a road
  6. ground — a position
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. court — of law
  11. ground — crushed
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. rock — a stone
  18. ground — the earth
  19. row — to paddle
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. snap — to click
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. kid — to tease

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