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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. drill — a practice
  3. land — ground
  4. drill — army training
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. land — a country
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. mark — a grade
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. row — a line
  14. drill — the tool
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. content — the amount
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. land — to come down
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. wind — moving air
  23. content — happy
  24. bowl — a football final

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