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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  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. drill — army training
  2. perch — the fish
  3. bat — the animal
  4. drill — the tool
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. spell — letters
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. firm — a company
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. spell — magic
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pass — a permit
  15. firm — steady
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. firm — decided
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. perch — for a bird
  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