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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 124 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 took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cue — for pool
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. field — for sport
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — to tire
  11. cue — a signal
  12. field — a subject
  13. cue — a hint
  14. track — a path
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. field — farmland
  19. track — a song
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. track — to keep track
  23. shower — to wash
  24. mate — a partner

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