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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. fork — in a road
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. drill — army training
  6. march — the month
  7. drill — the tool
  8. scale — in music
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. date — the fruit
  11. march — music
  12. ground — the earth
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. scale — size or range
  15. ground — a position
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — hurry
  20. ground — crushed
  21. fall — to drop
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. march — the month
  24. fall — the season

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