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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — army training
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. track — a path
  7. chip — to eat
  8. land — ground
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — a country
  12. drill — the tool
  13. rash — a series
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — happy
  16. track — a song
  17. track — to keep track
  18. march — music
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. chip — for betting
  22. rash — hasty
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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