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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 120 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: snap · club · pass · shower · game · nail · mark · drill

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. shower — to wash
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. club — for golf
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. game — wild animals
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. pass — a permit
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. mark — a trace
  14. club — a group
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. snap — to click
  19. club — for dancing
  20. drill — a practice
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — army training
  23. game — a match
  24. shower — rain

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