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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 120 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bore — to drill
  4. rest — what's left
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rash — a series
  8. cold — an illness
  9. rest — a break
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — the tool
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. bore — to tire
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. bat — the animal
  22. drill — army training
  23. mate — to breed
  24. rash — on the skin

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