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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. rush — hurry
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. shower — rain
  6. drill — army training
  7. cold — not warm
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. drill — the tool
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a hat
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. shower — to wash
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. squash — the sport
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. squash — to crush

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