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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. stand — to bear
  3. last — to go on
  4. capital — money
  5. last — finally
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. current — of water
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. drill — a practice
  13. capital — a city
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. current — electric
  16. last — final
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. current — happening now
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. drill — army training

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