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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. game — wild animals
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. rock — a stone
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. bore — to tire
  10. spring — a coil
  11. drill — army training
  12. last — finally
  13. spring — the season
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spring — of water
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. drill — the tool
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. last — final
  21. bore — to drill
  22. last — to go on
  23. rock — music
  24. drill — a practice

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