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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. drill — army training
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. sharp — clever
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. wound — an injury
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. mug — to rob
  12. mug — a cup
  13. drill — the tool
  14. row — a line
  15. spell — magic
  16. land — a country
  17. wound — an injury
  18. spell — a short time
  19. vault — a safe
  20. mug — a face
  21. drill — a practice
  22. land — to come down
  23. spell — letters
  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