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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. drill — army training
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. charge — electricity
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. fork — in a road
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wind — moving air
  13. shower — rain
  14. charge — a price
  15. drill — the tool
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — employees
  19. wind — moving air
  20. drill — a practice
  21. shower — to wash
  22. charge — in control
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. trunk — of a car

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