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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. drill — a practice
  4. file — a line of people
  5. cue — a signal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. tear — to rip
  8. club — for golf
  9. file — a tool
  10. rash — hasty
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bore — to drill
  13. club — for dancing
  14. drill — army training
  15. file — a document
  16. bear — the animal
  17. club — a group
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bore — to tire
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. cue — for pool
  24. rash — a series

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