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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bore — to drill
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. board — a committee
  7. clip — for paper
  8. sharp — clever
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. spell — magic
  12. board — to get on
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. clip — a video
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. clip — to cut
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. mine — for digging
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — letters
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. sharp — exactly

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