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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 116 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. scale — size or range
  3. chip — for betting
  4. firm — decided
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. drill — a practice
  7. object — to protest
  8. drill — army training
  9. fork — in a road
  10. scale — in music
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. clip — for paper
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. object — a thing
  15. firm — a company
  16. clip — a video
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. firm — steady
  20. object — an aim
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. clip — to cut
  24. chip — to eat

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