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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. land — to come down
  3. can — a tin
  4. hand — in cards
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — to sink
  8. drill — the tool
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. craft — boats
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. shower — rain
  14. can — to be able to
  15. shower — to wash
  16. craft — a skill
  17. land — a country
  18. hand — help
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. branch — a division
  21. land — ground
  22. drill — a practice
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. can — a tin

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