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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. rush — hurry
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. wind — moving air
  13. file — a line of people
  14. season — in sport
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bore — to tire
  21. wind — moving air
  22. season — of the year
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. perch — the fish

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