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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  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 drill
  2. cell — in biology
  3. bore — to tire
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. game — wild animals
  8. hand — in cards
  9. wound — an injury
  10. spell — magic
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — a phone
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. spell — letters
  16. game — a match
  17. wound — an injury
  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