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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.

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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. clip — to cut
  3. drill — a practice
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. firm — a company
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. clip — for paper
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. perch — the fish
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. staff — employees
  13. drill — the tool
  14. firm — steady
  15. firm — decided
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. staff — employees
  18. drill — army training
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. last — to go on
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. last — finally
  23. clip — a video
  24. last — final

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