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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.

Make a worksheet

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've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. pit — a hole
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. drill — a practice
  5. track — a song
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. drill — army training
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. drill — the tool
  10. track — to keep track
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. pit — in a race
  13. track — a path
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. spell — magic
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. spell — letters

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