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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. bore — to tire
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. cold — not warm
  6. lean — thin
  7. land — ground
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cold — an illness
  12. sharp — clever
  13. land — to come down
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. land — a country
  20. lean — to bend
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bore — to drill
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. lie — an untruth

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