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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 116 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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. land — to come down
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. bat — the animal
  7. dip — to sink
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bore — to drill
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. shower — rain
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. suit — clothes
  16. land — a country
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. land — ground
  21. suit — to fit
  22. suit — in cards
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. ball — a dance

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