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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. file — a tool
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. file — a line of people
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. bore — to tire
  10. drill — the tool
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. drill — a practice
  16. file — a document
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bore — to drill
  21. fork — in a road
  22. drill — army training
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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