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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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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. drill — the tool
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. drill — army training
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. spell — letters
  7. board — a committee
  8. clip — a video
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. drill — a practice
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. saw — the tool
  17. pound — a weight
  18. board — to get on
  19. last — final
  20. spell — a short time
  21. spell — magic
  22. last — to go on
  23. clip — to cut
  24. 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