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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. land — a country
  3. file — a line of people
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. file — a tool
  6. land — ground
  7. mate — to breed
  8. staff — employees
  9. drill — a practice
  10. land — to come down
  11. drill — army training
  12. court — of law
  13. staff — a stick
  14. file — a document
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mate — a partner
  17. court — of a king
  18. mate — a friend
  19. court — for sport
  20. tear — from crying
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. staff — employees
  24. tear — to rip

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