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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. spring — of water
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. spring — the season
  10. bore — to tire
  11. drill — army training
  12. spring — a coil
  13. squash — the sport
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. squash — to crush
  18. face — to confront
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. drill — the tool
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bore — to drill

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