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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. staff — employees
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. march — the month
  7. staff — a stick
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. present — there
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. bulb — for light
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. bulb — for light
  18. kid — to tease
  19. staff — employees
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. ball — a dance
  23. kid — child
  24. nail — on a finger

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