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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: cell · board · saw · racket · bulb · squash · ground · fork

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cell — a phone
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. squash — the sport
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — for light
  9. board — a committee
  10. saw — the tool
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. ground — a position
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. board — to get on
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — in a road
  20. ground — the earth
  21. squash — to crush
  22. cell — in biology
  23. saw — the tool
  24. cell — in a prison

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