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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 took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — to drop
  6. drill — the tool
  7. kid — child
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. wound — an injury
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. kid — to tease
  14. drill — a practice
  15. fall — the season
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. saw — the tool
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. mine — for digging
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. drill — army training
  24. nail — for a hammer

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