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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — army training
  3. firm — a company
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. firm — decided
  10. court — of law
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. court — of a king
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. mark — a grade
  15. court — for sport
  16. drill — the tool
  17. cold — not warm
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a trace
  20. firm — steady
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. rest — a break
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. cold — an illness

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