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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 had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. spell — a short time
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — the tool
  5. spell — magic
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. last — final
  8. shower — to wash
  9. key — the most important part
  10. key — in music
  11. clip — to cut
  12. last — finally
  13. clip — for paper
  14. key — for a lock
  15. shower — rain
  16. spell — letters
  17. clip — a video
  18. last — to go on

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