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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. drill — a practice
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — clever
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to drill
  7. capital — a city
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. drill — army training
  11. ball — a dance
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cell — in biology
  14. band — a ring
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bore — to tire
  17. capital — money
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. ball — a great time
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. drill — the tool
  23. shower — to wash
  24. cell — in a prison

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