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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mate — a partner
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — a short time
  7. mate — a friend
  8. current — electric
  9. cell — in biology
  10. drill — the tool
  11. rash — hasty
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rash — a series
  14. current — happening now
  15. mate — to breed
  16. capital — a city
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. snap — to click
  19. drill — army training
  20. spell — letters
  21. current — of water
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. capital — money
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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