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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. cue — a hint
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. drill — army training
  8. file — a document
  9. cue — for pool
  10. cue — a signal
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. file — a tool
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. row — to paddle
  15. file — a line of people
  16. fork — in a road
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. drill — the tool
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. row — a line
  24. jam — a tight spot

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