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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. key — for a lock
  3. key — the most important part
  4. bore — to tire
  5. drill — army training
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. season — of the year
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. season — in sport
  10. mug — a face
  11. wound — an injury
  12. drill — a practice
  13. mug — to rob
  14. key — in music
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bore — to drill
  20. mug — a cup
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. sharp — clever
  24. drill — the tool

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