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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. saw — the tool
  8. track — a path
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. drill — army training
  12. rush — hurry
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. cold — an illness
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. drill — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. capital — money
  22. cold — not warm
  23. drill — a practice
  24. saw — the tool

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