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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. drill — army training
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. ground — crushed
  6. file — a document
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. file — a line of people
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. shower — rain
  14. ground — a position
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. pitch — completely
  17. wax — to grow
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. shower — to wash
  20. drill — a practice
  21. ground — the earth
  22. drill — the tool
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. file — a 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