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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 120 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: bat · press · cue · ground · ruler · lash · fork · racket

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cue — a hint
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. ground — the earth
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. cue — a signal
  11. cue — for pool
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. press — a publisher
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. press — to push
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. press — newspapers
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. ground — a position
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bat — for baseball

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