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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. band — a music group
  3. drill — a practice
  4. band — a ring
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cue — a hint
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. date — the fruit
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. drill — the tool
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cue — for pool
  16. file — a document
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. file — a tool
  23. cue — a signal
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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