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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. spring — of water
  5. fork — in a road
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. drill — a practice
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. drill — army training
  14. mine — for digging
  15. spring — the season
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. spring — a coil
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bass — low music
  24. lash — an eyelash

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