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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. last — final
  5. spell — a short time
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. shower — rain
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. shower — to wash
  11. staff — a stick
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bulb — for light
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bore — to tire
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. last — to go on
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. staff — employees
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. last — finally
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — magic

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