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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. can — to be able to
  3. drill — the tool
  4. spell — a short time
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. spell — magic
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wind — moving air
  11. shower — rain
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — a tin
  15. drill — army training
  16. mark — a trace
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. shower — to wash
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. spell — letters
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rush — hurry

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