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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. drill — the tool
  3. ball — a dance
  4. toast — bread
  5. net — in sport
  6. game — a match
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. fall — to drop
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. sharp — clever
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — for catching
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. drill — a practice
  20. ball — a great time
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. drill — army training
  24. sharp — with an edge

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