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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bore — to drill
  4. file — a line of people
  5. capital — money
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bat — the animal
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. file — a tool
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. file — a document
  15. game — a match
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. capital — a city
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. game — a kind of play

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