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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wound — an injury
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bore — to tire
  7. file — a document
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bore — to drill
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. clip — a video
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. mine — for digging

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