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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 116 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spell — magic
  3. rush — hurry
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. drill — a practice
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. row — to paddle
  8. drill — the tool
  9. spell — a short time
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — a line
  12. capital — a city
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. vault — a safe
  15. scale — size or range
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. drill — army training
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. scale — in music
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. capital — money
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — of the leg

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