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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 120 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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. drill — the tool
  6. hand — help
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. bore — to tire
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. tube — the underground
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. degree — from a university
  16. drill — army training
  17. ball — a great time
  18. tube — a container
  19. hand — in cards
  20. ball — a dance
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. drill — a practice
  23. degree — an amount
  24. bore — to drill

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