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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — army training
  3. mark — a trace
  4. row — a line
  5. last — final
  6. saw — the tool
  7. chip — to eat
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. mark — a grade
  10. saw — the tool
  11. last — finally
  12. row — to paddle
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. chip — for betting
  15. last — to go on
  16. drill — a practice
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. lean — thin
  21. fork — in a road
  22. lean — to bend
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. chip — in a computer

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