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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. spell — magic
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pop — soda
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. pop — to visit
  9. staff — employees
  10. saw — the tool
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. drill — the tool
  13. track — a path
  14. pound — a weight
  15. spell — letters
  16. pop — music
  17. drill — a practice
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. track — a song
  20. drill — army training
  21. staff — a stick
  22. staff — employees
  23. track — to keep track
  24. spell — a short time

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