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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 116 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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. rush — hurry
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mine — for digging
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. can — a tin
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. can — a tin
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. can — to be able to
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. saw — the tool

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