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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. squash — the sport
  3. file — a line of people
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. land — ground
  6. bore — to tire
  7. charge — electricity
  8. charge — a price
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. squash — to crush
  11. foot — a measure
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. file — a tool
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. land — to come down
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. land — a country
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. wound — an injury
  21. file — a document
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wound — an injury
  24. charge — in control

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