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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. fine — high quality
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. hand — in cards
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. drill — the tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fall — to drop
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. fall — the season
  14. hand — help
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fine — all right
  18. fall — to drop
  19. prune — to trim
  20. snap — to click
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. fork — in a road
  23. drill — army training
  24. prune — the fruit

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