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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. row — a line
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. staff — employees
  5. drill — army training
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cold — an illness
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — a hat
  12. row — to paddle
  13. toast — bread
  14. fine — all right
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. staff — employees
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. drill — a practice
  19. fine — high quality
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in biology
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. staff — a stick

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