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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. spell — letters
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. land — to come down
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bore — to tire
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. stock — goods
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. spell — a short time
  15. shower — to wash
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. spell — magic
  19. stock — shares
  20. shower — rain
  21. fork — in a road
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — for measuring

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