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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. chip — to eat
  3. saw — the tool
  4. root — of a word
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. last — to go on
  7. bass — low music
  8. drill — a practice
  9. press — to push
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. root — of a plant
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. press — a publisher
  15. root — the cause
  16. chip — for betting
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. last — final
  19. last — finally
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. press — newspapers
  23. drill — army training
  24. bass — the fish

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