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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. file — a tool
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bound — obliged
  8. pitch — completely
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. drill — army training
  13. file — a document
  14. scale — in music
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. prune — to trim
  18. dip — to sink
  19. scale — size or range
  20. bound — certain
  21. file — a line of people
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. bound — tied together
  24. drill — 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