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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. squash — the sport
  5. drill — army training
  6. cell — a phone
  7. drill — a practice
  8. scale — size or range
  9. board — to get on
  10. land — a country
  11. firm — decided
  12. firm — steady
  13. scale — in music
  14. land — ground
  15. firm — a company
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. drill — the tool
  18. squash — to crush
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. dip — to sink
  23. board — a committee
  24. cell — in biology

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