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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 120 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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. bore — to tire
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. saw — the tool
  5. game — a match
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. saw — the tool
  8. spell — magic
  9. bore — to drill
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rash — a series
  13. game — wild animals
  14. spell — letters
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. drill — a practice
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. rush — hurry
  19. drill — the tool
  20. rash — hasty
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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