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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. drill — a practice
  4. hand — help
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. dip — to sink
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. rock — music
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. game — wild animals
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — of ice
  15. hand — in cards
  16. game — a match
  17. drill — army training
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. wake — a trail
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. drill — the tool
  23. rock — a stone
  24. game — a kind of play

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