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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 124 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. file — a tool
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. wind — moving air
  7. ball — a dance
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. scale — in music
  10. bound — obliged
  11. file — a document
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. wind — moving air
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. file — a line of people
  18. scale — size or range
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — a practice
  22. bound — certain
  23. ball — a great time
  24. bound — tied together

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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