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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. snap — to click
  4. capital — a city
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. scale — size or range
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. drill — army training
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. drill — a practice
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. capital — money
  19. fork — in a road
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. scale — in music
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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