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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. hand — help
  3. race — humankind
  4. file — a tool
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. fine — all right
  7. tear — from crying
  8. hand — in cards
  9. race — a contest
  10. bulb — for light
  11. fine — high quality
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bulb — for light
  17. tear — to rip
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. sharp — clever
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a line of people
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. tear — from crying

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