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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. row — a line
  4. spell — magic
  5. bore — to tire
  6. spell — letters
  7. wake — a trail
  8. charge — electricity
  9. charge — in control
  10. charge — a price
  11. kid — to tease
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. drill — the tool
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. row — to paddle
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — army training
  21. spell — a short time
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. bore — to drill

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