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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 ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. rush — hurry
  3. file — a document
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. lie — to recline
  9. drill — a practice
  10. file — a tool
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bore — to tire
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. file — a line of people
  15. bore — to drill
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. craft — boats
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. craft — a skill

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