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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. file — a line of people
  3. drill — the tool
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. drill — army training
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. drill — a practice
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. pound — a weight
  11. file — a document
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — to crush
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. file — a tool
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. squash — the vegetable

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