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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 116 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've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. drill — army training
  6. key — in music
  7. spell — magic
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. face — part of the head
  10. face — to confront
  11. fork — in a road
  12. drill — the tool
  13. clip — a video
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. hand — help
  17. key — for a lock
  18. hand — in cards
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. face — to point toward
  22. key — the most important part
  23. spell — letters
  24. drill — a practice

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