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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: deal · hide · cold · pit · plane · dip · fork · hand

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. pit — in a race
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. fork — in a road
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. hand — help
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. hand — in cards
  16. dip — to sink
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. pit — a hole
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. deal — to handle
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. plane — a tool
  24. hide — animal skin

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