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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. bound — obliged
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. shower — to wash
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. drill — the tool
  8. foot — a measure
  9. march — the month
  10. bound — certain
  11. drill — army training
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. march — music
  17. swing — in golf
  18. march — the month
  19. scale — size or range
  20. scale — in music
  21. swing — music
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. bound — tied together
  24. drill — a practice

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