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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. row — to paddle
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. tube — a container
  5. bore — to drill
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. rash — hasty
  9. row — a line
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bore — to tire
  14. kid — child
  15. tube — the underground
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. rash — a series
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kid — to tease
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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