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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. bound — certain
  3. fall — the season
  4. mug — to rob
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. land — a country
  7. bound — tied together
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. fall — to drop
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. kick — in football
  12. drill — a practice
  13. land — to come down
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. snap — to click
  16. mug — a face
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fall — to drop
  19. drill — army training
  20. land — ground
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bound — obliged
  23. row — a line
  24. row — to paddle

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