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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bore — to drill
  4. face — to confront
  5. rash — a series
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — part of the head
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rash — hasty
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cold — an illness
  13. spring — the season
  14. lie — to recline
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bore — to tire
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. spring — of water
  24. cold — not warm

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