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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. kid — to tease
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. rule — government
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. kid — child
  9. rule — a law
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a tool
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bore — to drill
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. bore — to tire
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. file — a document
  23. saw — the tool
  24. mine — for digging

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