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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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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: dip · rash · drill · saw · swing · fall · bat · fork

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. saw — the tool
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. swing — music
  6. bat — the animal
  7. drill — a practice
  8. rash — a series
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. swing — to play on
  11. fall — to drop
  12. drill — the tool
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. dip — to sink
  15. swing — in golf
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. saw — the tool
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rash — hasty
  20. fall — the season
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. drill — army training

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