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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 had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. rock — music
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. capital — money
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. capital — a city
  7. bore — to tire
  8. rock — a stone
  9. stand — to bear
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. bore — to drill
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. drill — the tool
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cold — not warm
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. drill — army training
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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