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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: fork · shower · bat · kid · rest · cabinet · plane · land

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. rest — what's left
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — child
  6. land — a country
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — the animal
  10. rest — a break
  11. fork — in a road
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. rest — what's left
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. land — ground
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. land — to come down

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