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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 116 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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. file — a line of people
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. file — a tool
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. file — a document
  13. cap — of ice
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. cap — a hat
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wound — an injury
  20. shower — rain
  21. staff — employees
  22. shower — to wash
  23. wound — an injury
  24. cap — a lid

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