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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. wind — moving air
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. last — finally
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stock — goods
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. drill — a practice
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. lean — to bend
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. drill — army training
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. stock — shares
  18. lean — thin
  19. snap — to click
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. dip — to sink
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. stock — a soup base

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