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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: net · can · bat · sharp · land · ruler · fork · toast

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. land — to come down
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. net — in sport
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. net — after costs
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. sharp — clever
  16. land — ground
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. net — for catching
  20. fork — in a road
  21. toast — bread
  22. land — a country
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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