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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a great time
  4. scale — size or range
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — a practice
  7. dip — to sink
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. scale — in music
  10. saw — the tool
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. craft — boats
  14. ball — a dance
  15. craft — a skill
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. game — a match
  19. saw — the tool
  20. game — wild animals
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. dip — to dunk

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