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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 116 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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. drill — the tool
  6. drill — a practice
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. content — the amount
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. drill — army training
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. scale — size or range
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. scale — in music
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. dip — to sink
  21. cold — an illness
  22. content — happy
  23. cold — not warm
  24. lash — to lash out

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