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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. last — final
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. degree — from a university
  6. key — for a lock
  7. drill — a practice
  8. last — finally
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bore — to tire
  15. drill — army training
  16. degree — temperature
  17. last — to go on
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. bore — to drill
  20. degree — an amount
  21. key — the most important part
  22. drill — the tool
  23. key — in music
  24. patient — a sick person

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