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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bore — to drill
  3. press — to push
  4. bore — to tire
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. press — a publisher
  7. cold — an illness
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a tool
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. press — newspapers
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. mug — a cup
  17. perch — the fish
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. mug — to rob
  20. mug — a face
  21. sharp — clever
  22. deal — to handle
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. file — a document

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