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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. drill — army training
  6. squash — the sport
  7. club — a group
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. degree — an amount
  11. drill — a practice
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bore — to tire
  15. cold — not warm
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. drill — the tool
  20. sharp — clever
  21. club — for dancing
  22. club — for golf
  23. bore — to drill
  24. degree — from a university

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