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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. game — wild animals
  3. mate — a partner
  4. shower — rain
  5. key — in music
  6. game — a match
  7. key — for a lock
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. mate — to breed
  10. shower — to wash
  11. mate — a friend
  12. key — the most important part
  13. capital — money
  14. spell — a short time
  15. spell — letters
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. bore — to tire
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. capital — a city
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. spell — magic

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