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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. sharp — clever
  4. spring — the season
  5. drill — a practice
  6. tube — the underground
  7. tube — a container
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. track — a song
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. drill — army training
  17. track — to keep track
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. perch — the fish
  21. mate — a partner
  22. mate — a friend
  23. drill — the tool
  24. track — a path

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