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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 124 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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. drill — the tool
  5. spring — a coil
  6. prune — to trim
  7. pound — a weight
  8. court — of law
  9. spring — of water
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. key — in music
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. drill — army training
  16. key — the most important part
  17. court — of a king
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bat — the animal
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. spring — the season
  22. key — for a lock
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. court — for sport

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