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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — ground
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. drill — a practice
  5. bore — to drill
  6. shower — to wash
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. bass — the fish
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. season — of the year
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. season — in sport
  16. bore — to tire
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bass — low music
  19. drill — army training
  20. land — to come down
  21. deal — to handle
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. shower — rain
  24. bulb — for light

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