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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. shower — rain
  4. current — electric
  5. clip — a video
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bulb — for light
  8. cell — in biology
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — a break
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bulb — for light
  13. drill — a practice
  14. clip — to cut
  15. cell — a phone
  16. clip — for paper
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. current — of water
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. current — happening now

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