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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: rush · land · wound · leaves · mark · sharp · drill · pop

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  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. land — to come down
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — soda
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. sharp — clever
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. wound — an injury
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. drill — the tool
  14. pop — music
  15. land — ground
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. drill — a practice
  21. land — a country
  22. rush — hurry
  23. mark — a grade
  24. drill — army training

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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