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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bore — to tire
  4. saw — the tool
  5. row — a line
  6. bore — to drill
  7. spell — magic
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — a friend
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. clip — a video
  13. mate — to breed
  14. saw — the tool
  15. row — to paddle
  16. ground — the earth
  17. spell — a short time
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. ground — a position
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. spell — letters
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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