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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rash — a series
  4. pop — soda
  5. hand — help
  6. mug — to rob
  7. wake — a trail
  8. rash — hasty
  9. drill — the tool
  10. pop — music
  11. drill — a practice
  12. mug — a face
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. drill — army training
  15. mug — a cup
  16. pop — to visit
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. dip — to sink
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. hand — in cards
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. saw — 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