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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bore — to drill
  5. mate — a partner
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. band — a ring
  8. deal — to handle
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — music
  11. race — humankind
  12. shower — rain
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. mate — to breed
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — a contest
  19. bore — to tire
  20. swing — in golf
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. band — a music group

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