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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. rest — what's left
  7. drill — the tool
  8. staff — employees
  9. march — the month
  10. bound — certain
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. drill — army training
  13. shower — to wash
  14. staff — a stick
  15. shower — rain
  16. land — to come down
  17. rest — a break
  18. bound — obliged
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bound — tied together
  21. march — the month
  22. rest — what's left
  23. drill — a practice
  24. march — music

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