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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mug — a cup
  5. bore — to tire
  6. land — a country
  7. wake — a trail
  8. tear — to rip
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. land — ground
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. mug — a face
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bore — to drill
  21. land — to come down
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mug — to rob

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