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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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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: game · drill · mouse · bay · sharp · saw · march · roll

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. game — a match
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. march — the month
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. drill — the tool
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. march — music
  12. saw — the tool
  13. sharp — clever
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. saw — the tool
  16. roll — a cake
  17. drill — a practice
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. drill — army training
  21. game — wild animals
  22. march — the month
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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