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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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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. season — of the year
  3. scale — size or range
  4. spell — letters
  5. mug — a face
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. season — in sport
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bore — to drill
  11. spell — a short time
  12. scale — in music
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. mug — a cup
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. mug — to rob
  17. spell — magic
  18. bore — to tire

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