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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. rash — a series
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — the earth
  7. rash — hasty
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. rush — hurry
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bore — to tire
  20. cold — not warm
  21. ground — a position
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. mine — an explosive

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