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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. content — happy
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — to tire
  9. spell — letters
  10. content — the amount
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rash — a series
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. rash — hasty
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. deal — to handle
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wound — an injury
  24. spell — magic

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