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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: sharp · ground · file · drill · tear · bowl · prune · mouse

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — army training
  6. tear — from crying
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. file — a document
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. file — a line of people
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. ground — a position
  19. sharp — clever
  20. ground — crushed
  21. tear — to rip
  22. ground — the earth
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. file — a 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