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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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. court — for sport
  3. branch — a division
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. band — a music group
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. drill — the tool
  9. court — of a king
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. court — of law
  14. scale — in music
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. band — a ring
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. scale — size or range
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. tear — to rip
  22. drill — army training
  23. tear — from crying
  24. drill — a practice

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