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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bore — to drill
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. charge — in control
  5. pitch — completely
  6. drill — a practice
  7. charge — electricity
  8. march — music
  9. clip — a video
  10. current — electric
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. march — the month
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. charge — a price
  15. mine — for digging
  16. current — happening now
  17. bore — to tire
  18. march — the month
  19. current — of water
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. clip — for paper
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bore — gave birth

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