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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — a practice
  3. saw — the tool
  4. spell — magic
  5. drill — army training
  6. face — part of the head
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. race — a contest
  10. face — to point toward
  11. band — a music group
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. saw — the tool
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. face — to confront
  18. band — a ring
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. race — humankind
  21. spell — a short time
  22. race — the arms race
  23. lie — to recline
  24. spell — letters

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