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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: bowl · kick · fan · bay · fork · fine · clip · date

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. 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. bowl — a dish
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. fork — in a road
  5. fine — high quality
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. date — the fruit
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. fine — all right
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. clip — a video
  17. kick — in football
  18. clip — for paper
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. clip — to cut
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. 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