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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. sharp — clever
  3. drill — the tool
  4. drill — a practice
  5. spring — of water
  6. lie — to recline
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. shower — rain
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. drill — army training
  13. spring — the season
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. club — a group
  16. shower — to wash
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. spring — a coil
  19. wind — moving air
  20. club — for dancing
  21. club — for golf
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. lie — an untruth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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