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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. mine — for digging
  4. key — for a lock
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. drill — army training
  7. key — in music
  8. kid — to tease
  9. staff — employees
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. drill — a practice
  14. staff — employees
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. staff — a stick
  18. bark — to shout
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. kid — child
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bat — the animal
  23. drill — the tool
  24. key — the most important part

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