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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. drill — the tool
  3. swing — in golf
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. rash — hasty
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — army training
  10. swing — to play on
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. swing — music
  15. rash — a series
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. plane — a tool
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. cell — a phone
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — a match
  24. cell — in biology

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