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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 116 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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. drill — army training
  5. chair — a leader
  6. scale — in music
  7. scale — size or range
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. sharp — clever
  10. game — a match
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — hurry
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. drill — the tool
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. game — wild animals
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. drill — a practice

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