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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. face — to confront
  3. last — to go on
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. face — to point toward
  6. last — final
  7. bore — to drill
  8. face — part of the head
  9. kick — in football
  10. spell — letters
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. shower — to wash
  13. spell — magic
  14. shower — rain
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. last — finally
  18. spell — a short time

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