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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. root — of a word
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. spring — of water
  5. spell — letters
  6. club — for dancing
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. shower — to wash
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spring — the season
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. club — for golf
  14. bore — to tire
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — the cause
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. shower — rain
  20. club — a group
  21. spring — a coil
  22. wound — an injury
  23. pass — a permit
  24. spell — magic

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