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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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Word bank
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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: hand · fork · date · bowl · lie · bat · present · root

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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. present — a gift
  2. lie — to recline
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. present — there
  5. root — of a plant
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. root — the cause
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — help
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bat — the animal
  18. present — the time now
  19. root — of a word
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. date — the fruit
  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