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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 will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a line of people
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. march — the month
  12. rest — a break
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a match
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. file — a document
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rush — hurry
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. march — music

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