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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. track — a song
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. track — to keep track
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. drill — the tool
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. clip — a video
  9. date — the fruit
  10. wind — moving air
  11. rock — music
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wind — moving air
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. drill — a practice
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. rock — a stone
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. track — a path
  24. date — on the calendar

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