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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. sharp — clever
  6. drill — a practice
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. fall — to drop
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bat — the animal
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. drill — army training
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — to eat
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. drill — the tool
  24. fall — the season

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