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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 116 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mug — a cup
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a line
  7. drill — a practice
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lean — thin
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ground — a position
  13. drill — army training
  14. lean — to bend
  15. swing — to play on
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. swing — music
  18. ground — crushed
  19. mug — a face
  20. swing — in golf
  21. ground — the earth
  22. drill — the tool
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. tear — to rip

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