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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 124 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. press — to push
  3. bore — to drill
  4. rule — government
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bore — to tire
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. fine — high quality
  10. rash — a series
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. press — a publisher
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rash — hasty
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. pound — a weight
  20. press — newspapers
  21. rule — a law
  22. fine — all right
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. hand — in cards

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