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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. wound — an injury
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — the tool
  5. mate — a friend
  6. spring — of water
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. drill — army training
  9. spell — a short time
  10. march — music
  11. spell — letters
  12. spring — the season
  13. mate — to breed
  14. root — the cause
  15. spring — a coil
  16. march — the month
  17. root — of a word
  18. spell — magic
  19. cue — a signal
  20. root — of a plant
  21. mate — a partner
  22. march — the month
  23. wound — an injury
  24. cue — for pool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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