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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. pitch — completely
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. ball — a great time
  5. hand — in cards
  6. spell — letters
  7. hand — help
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. drill — army training
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. ball — a dance
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. drill — the tool
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. drill — a practice
  22. spell — magic
  23. spell — a short time
  24. bore — to drill

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