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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. last — final
  3. can — a tin
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. spell — letters
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. bore — to drill
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. spell — a short time
  12. clip — a video
  13. squash — the sport
  14. bat — the animal
  15. can — a tin
  16. last — finally
  17. clip — for paper
  18. spell — magic
  19. clip — to cut
  20. can — to be able to
  21. last — to go on
  22. bore — to tire
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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