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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. file — a document
  3. drill — army training
  4. file — a line of people
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. clip — a video
  10. mug — to rob
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — music
  16. clip — for paper
  17. mug — a face
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. mug — a cup
  20. file — a tool
  21. drill — a practice
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. clip — to cut
  24. mine — belonging to me

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