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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're almost out of ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. drill — the tool
  3. dip — to sink
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. scale — size or range
  6. club — for golf
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. club — for dancing
  9. present — a gift
  10. pop — music
  11. club — a group
  12. drill — a practice
  13. file — a tool
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. pop — to visit
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. drill — army training
  18. present — the time now
  19. scale — in music
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. present — there
  24. dip — to dunk

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