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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. land — to come down
  3. drill — the tool
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. row — to paddle
  8. pop — to visit
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chip — for betting
  12. fine — high quality
  13. pop — music
  14. clip — for paper
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — to eat
  17. land — ground
  18. row — a line
  19. land — a country
  20. prune — to trim
  21. fine — all right
  22. prune — to trim
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pop — soda

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