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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. cap — a lid
  3. spring — a coil
  4. drill — the tool
  5. rest — a break
  6. fall — the season
  7. rest — what's left
  8. cap — a hat
  9. prune — to trim
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. spring — the season
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. prune — to trim
  16. fall — to drop
  17. rest — what's left
  18. chair — a leader
  19. rash — a series
  20. rash — hasty
  21. spring — of water
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. drill — army training
  24. cap — of ice

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