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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 120 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bore — to drill
  3. spell — letters
  4. swing — music
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bore — to tire
  7. last — to go on
  8. mark — a trace
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. mark — a grade
  12. drill — army training
  13. race — a contest
  14. last — final
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. drill — a practice
  19. last — finally
  20. drill — the tool
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pass — a permit
  23. race — humankind
  24. spell — magic

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