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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. drill — the tool
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bark — to shout
  5. last — final
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. plane — a tool
  13. bass — the fish
  14. drill — a practice
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — for pool
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. drill — army training
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — the season
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. cue — a hint
  24. bass — low 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