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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. bear — the animal
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. drill — a practice
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. chest — of your body
  14. net — after costs
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — in sport
  18. snap — to click
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. chest — of your body
  22. drill — army training
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. chest — a box

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