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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. present — there
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. drill — a practice
  5. present — a gift
  6. race — the arms race
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rule — government
  10. race — a contest
  11. ball — a dance
  12. race — humankind
  13. rule — a law
  14. drill — the tool
  15. present — the time now
  16. bore — to drill
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. drill — army training
  22. bore — to tire
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wax — in the ear

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