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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. drill — army training
  4. bat — the animal
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. last — to go on
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. last — final
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. bound — obliged
  14. drill — the tool
  15. drill — a practice
  16. lean — to bend
  17. dip — to sink
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bound — certain
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bound — tied together
  24. lean — thin

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