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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. deal — to handle
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bore — to drill
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. ground — a position
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. tear — from crying
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. ground — the earth
  18. file — a document
  19. ground — crushed
  20. file — a line of people
  21. bore — to tire
  22. file — a tool
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. temple — a place of worship

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