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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 120 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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. file — a tool
  3. bore — to drill
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a great time
  6. land — ground
  7. file — a document
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. land — to come down
  11. sharp — clever
  12. firm — decided
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. land — a country
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. firm — a company
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. file — a line of people
  19. firm — steady
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. bore — to tire
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. arm — part of the body

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