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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. rash — hasty
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — a trail
  6. rash — a series
  7. chair — a leader
  8. content — happy
  9. can — a tin
  10. drill — a practice
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. content — the amount
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. drill — army training
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. land — a country
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. rash — on the skin

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