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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — help
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. drill — a practice
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. drill — the tool
  9. file — a tool
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. bore — to drill
  12. season — in sport
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. season — of the year
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. hand — in cards
  18. file — a document
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bore — to tire
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. drill — army training

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