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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. mate — a partner
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. drill — a practice
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mark — a grade
  9. mate — a friend
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. drill — army training
  13. shower — to wash
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — in a road
  16. shower — rain
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. mark — a trace

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