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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. clip — to cut
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. drill — army training
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. clip — a video
  12. object — to protest
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. drill — the tool
  15. object — a thing
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — to shout
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. object — an aim
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. drill — a practice
  22. clip — for paper
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. patient — a sick person

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