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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. face — to confront
  4. drill — army training
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. face — to point toward
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. squash — the sport
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. clip — a video
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. face — part of the head
  16. rush — hurry
  17. squash — to crush
  18. cold — not warm
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chip — for betting
  23. drill — a practice
  24. rush — a thrill

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