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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. mug — to rob
  3. shower — rain
  4. bore — to drill
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. cell — a phone
  7. mug — a cup
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — in music
  10. cell — in biology
  11. mug — a face
  12. key — the most important part
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. fork — in a road
  17. field — for sport
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. field — farmland
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. field — a subject
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. scale — in music

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