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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: scale · snap · bowl · rush · drill · straw · march · rash

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rash — a series
  3. snap — to click
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. march — music
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. march — the month
  15. scale — size or range
  16. drill — the tool
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — in music
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. march — the month
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — a practice

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