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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. rest — what's left
  3. pop — soda
  4. drill — a practice
  5. scale — in music
  6. pop — music
  7. bat — the animal
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. fine — all right
  11. wake — a trail
  12. drill — army training
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. drill — the tool
  15. fine — high quality
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. scale — size or range
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. pop — to visit
  24. scale — for weighing

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