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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. pass — a permit
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bore — to tire
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bore — to drill
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bulb — for light
  11. wake — a trail
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. tear — from crying

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