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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. drill — army training
  3. current — happening now
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bat — the animal
  7. drill — a practice
  8. rock — music
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. pit — in a race
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rash — a series
  13. prune — to trim
  14. current — electric
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. deal — to handle
  19. rock — a stone
  20. current — of water
  21. pit — a hole
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. drill — the tool
  24. rock — to move gently

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