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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. saw — the tool
  3. drill — the tool
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. chest — a box
  6. drill — a practice
  7. spell — letters
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. last — to go on
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. drill — army training
  12. spell — a short time
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. bulb — for light
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. bulb — for light
  18. saw — the tool
  19. last — final
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. spell — magic
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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