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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: straw · kid · cold · sharp · season · firm · fork · vault

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. firm — decided
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. fork — in a road
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. kid — to tease
  10. season — of the year
  11. cold — not warm
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. kid — child
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. season — in sport
  17. cold — an illness
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. firm — steady
  21. vault — a safe
  22. sharp — clever
  23. firm — a company
  24. straw — a straw man

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