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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. drill — a practice
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bound — tied together
  8. drill — the tool
  9. file — a tool
  10. tear — to rip
  11. drill — army training
  12. hand — in cards
  13. squash — to crush
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. squash — the sport
  16. file — a document
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bound — obliged
  19. scale — in music
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hand — help
  23. scale — size or range
  24. file — a line of people

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