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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 120 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. stem — to come from
  4. drill — the tool
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. drill — army training
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. ground — a position
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. fine — all right
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ground — the earth
  15. snap — to click
  16. spell — letters
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. spell — a short time
  20. ground — crushed
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. fine — high quality
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pitcher — a jug

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