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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. board — to get on
  12. saw — the tool
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — to wash
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bat — the animal
  22. board — a committee
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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