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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 120 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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. track — to keep track
  4. drill — a practice
  5. pass — a permit
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. wind — moving air
  8. drill — army training
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. track — a path
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. track — a song
  13. chest — of your body
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. chest — of your body
  18. mine — for digging
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. chest — a box
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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