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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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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. hand — in cards
  3. current — happening now
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. drill — the tool
  6. season — in sport
  7. current — electric
  8. drill — a practice
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. key — in music
  11. current — of water
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. drill — army training
  14. fork — in a road
  15. hand — help
  16. saw — the tool
  17. season — of the year
  18. key — the most important part
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. saw — the tool
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. key — for a lock
  24. mine — belonging to me

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