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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. drill — a practice
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. spring — the season
  5. drill — the tool
  6. spring — a coil
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pop — soda
  11. sharp — clever
  12. drill — army training
  13. pop — to visit
  14. spring — of water
  15. game — a match
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. game — wild animals
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. suit — clothes
  21. suit — in cards
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. pop — music
  24. suit — to fit

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