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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 asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. file — a tool
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. mate — a friend
  9. spell — a short time
  10. file — a document
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. bore — to drill
  17. file — a line of people
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. mate — a partner
  20. wake — a trail
  21. bore — to tire
  22. spell — letters
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. mine — for digging

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