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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 very handy with a ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. shower — rain
  6. bore — to tire
  7. rock — music
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. shower — to wash
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wound — an injury
  12. rock — a stone
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. wound — an injury
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bore — to drill
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bowl — a football final

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