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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. mug — a face
  4. drill — the tool
  5. last — finally
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. drill — a practice
  8. mine — for digging
  9. branch — a division
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. mug — to rob
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. bat — the animal
  17. scale — in music
  18. drill — army training
  19. last — to go on
  20. mug — a cup
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. last — final
  24. scale — size or range

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