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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. rest — what's left
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. rest — a break
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — magic
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a tool
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bore — to tire
  17. rest — what's left
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mine — for digging
  21. sharp — clever
  22. spell — letters
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. coach — a trainer

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