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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. track — a path
  5. wind — moving air
  6. shower — to wash
  7. saw — the tool
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. drill — army training
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. track — to keep track
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. shower — rain
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stem — to come from
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. drill — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. track — a song
  24. stem — a stem cell

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