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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 asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. court — for sport
  3. drill — a practice
  4. spell — letters
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bore — to drill
  7. shower — to wash
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. spell — a short time
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. saw — the tool
  17. court — of law
  18. shower — rain
  19. bulb — for light
  20. drill — the tool
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. drill — army training
  24. court — of a king

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