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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. track — a song
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. cap — a hat
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. track — to keep track
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. cap — of ice
  10. saw — the tool
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bat — the animal
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. rule — government
  15. track — a path
  16. row — a line
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. rule — a law
  22. row — to paddle
  23. cap — a lid
  24. straw — a straw man

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