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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — army training
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chip — to eat
  8. drill — a practice
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. chip — for betting
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. rest — what's left
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rest — a break
  24. branch — a division

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