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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. drill — a practice
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. scale — size or range
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. dip — to sink
  9. drill — the tool
  10. march — music
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. tear — to rip
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. scale — in music
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. drill — army training
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. wave — with your hand

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