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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. drill — army training
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cap — a hat
  8. lean — thin
  9. kick — in football
  10. drill — the tool
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. shower — rain
  13. plane — a tool
  14. cap — of ice
  15. drill — a practice
  16. lean — to bend
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. cap — a lid
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. cue — a hint
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. cue — a signal
  24. plane — in geometry

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