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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 had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — army training
  3. tube — the underground
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — final
  6. last — finally
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. root — of a plant
  12. chest — a box
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. tube — a container
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. root — of a word
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. root — the cause
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. drill — the tool

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