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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. ground — a position
  3. bore — to tire
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. ground — the earth
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. drill — a practice
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. season — of the year
  12. drill — army training
  13. cold — an illness
  14. ground — crushed
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bore — to drill
  17. season — in sport
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. cold — not warm
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. plane — a tool
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. drill — the tool

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