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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. ground — a position
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. drill — the tool
  6. drill — a practice
  7. court — of a king
  8. track — a path
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bore — to tire
  12. court — of law
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bound — certain
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bore — to drill
  18. drill — army training
  19. track — to keep track
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. bound — obliged
  22. ground — the earth
  23. court — for sport
  24. track — a song

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