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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. drill — the tool
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. drill — army training
  12. clip — to cut
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. squash — the sport
  15. drill — a practice
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — to crush
  24. hide — to keep secret

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