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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.

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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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Word bank
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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. track — to keep track
  6. dip — to sink
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. track — a song
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. drill — a practice
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. season — in sport
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. season — of the year
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. track — a path
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — army training

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