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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 116 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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. mine — for digging
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. drill — the tool
  5. swing — music
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. drill — army training
  9. swing — in golf
  10. content — happy
  11. object — a thing
  12. content — the amount
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — clever
  16. drill — a practice
  17. swing — to play on
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. deal — to handle
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. mouse — the animal

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