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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rash — hasty
  3. hand — in cards
  4. mug — a face
  5. drill — a practice
  6. mug — to rob
  7. key — in music
  8. key — the most important part
  9. hand — help
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — for digging
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. mug — a cup
  14. spell — a short time
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rash — a series
  17. spell — magic
  18. drill — army training
  19. key — for a lock
  20. spell — letters
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. drill — the tool
  24. rest — a break

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