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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 120 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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. suit — in cards
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. scale — in music
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. drill — a practice
  10. saw — the tool
  11. suit — clothes
  12. stock — goods
  13. drill — army training
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. kid — child
  16. cell — a phone
  17. kid — to tease
  18. scale — size or range
  19. drill — the tool
  20. stock — shares
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. suit — to fit

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