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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. net — for catching
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. drill — a practice
  6. spell — magic
  7. drill — the tool
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. root — the cause
  10. drill — army training
  11. march — music
  12. root — of a word
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. spell — a short time
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. root — of a plant
  19. spell — letters
  20. net — after costs
  21. branch — a division
  22. march — the month
  23. net — in sport
  24. lash — an eyelash

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