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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. kid — child
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. drill — the tool
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. sharp — clever
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — to tease
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. court — of law
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. tube — the underground
  20. drill — a practice
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. rush — hurry
  23. chair — a leader
  24. sharp — with an edge

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