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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. fall — to drop
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. fall — to drop
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. tube — the underground
  10. fall — the season
  11. snap — to click
  12. drill — a practice
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. kid — child
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. drill — the tool
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. tube — a container
  24. bat — 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