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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 120 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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — for sport
  6. spring — the season
  7. bank — for money
  8. court — of law
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. drill — a practice
  11. spring — a coil
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. spring — of water
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bank — of a river
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. file — a tool
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. bank — for money
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — army training

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