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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. tube — a container
  4. kid — child
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fall — the season
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. mug — a face
  14. drill — the tool
  15. last — finally
  16. mug — to rob
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. plane — a tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. last — to go on
  22. mug — a cup
  23. fall — to drop
  24. kid — to tease

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