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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: dip · present · game · fork · field · object · stand · hand

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. fork — in a road
  4. hand — in cards
  5. game — wild animals
  6. present — the time now
  7. field — a subject
  8. stand — to bear
  9. field — farmland
  10. dip — to sink
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. field — for sport
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. present — a gift
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — to protest
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. hand — help
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. present — there
  24. object — a thing

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