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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. file — a tool
  3. drill — the tool
  4. file — a document
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. land — a country
  7. pop — music
  8. march — the month
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. file — a line of people
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. drill — a practice
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. march — music
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — to visit
  22. rush — hurry
  23. march — the month
  24. drill — army training

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