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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. drill — army training
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. shower — rain
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. shower — to wash
  10. sharp — clever
  11. rule — government
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. rule — a law
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. lie — to recline

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