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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. scale — size or range
  3. drill — the tool
  4. tube — a container
  5. cold — an illness
  6. hand — help
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cold — not warm
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. bore — to drill
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. tube — the underground
  14. scale — in music
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. drill — a practice
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. hand — in cards
  19. ball — a dance
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. ball — a great time
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to tire

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