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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. ground — a position
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pit — a hole
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. bore — to tire
  10. ground — crushed
  11. ground — the earth
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. pit — in a race
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. rush — hurry
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. drill — army training
  23. bore — to drill
  24. wave — with your hand

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