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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. bass — low music
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. game — wild animals
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — part of the head
  8. rock — a stone
  9. game — a match
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. drill — the tool
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. face — to point toward
  17. drill — a practice
  18. date — the fruit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. rock — music
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. bass — the fish
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. bass — the instrument

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