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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bound — obliged
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — rain
  5. cold — an illness
  6. drill — a practice
  7. shower — to wash
  8. pop — soda
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. drill — army training
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pop — music
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. drill — the tool
  24. cold — the Cold War

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