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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chest · current · bore · cold · plane · nail · spring · tear

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. spring — the season
  3. plane — a tool
  4. current — electric
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. spring — a coil
  8. cold — an illness
  9. spring — of water
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. bore — to tire
  12. tear — from crying
  13. current — happening now
  14. tear — from crying
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bore — to drill
  18. current — of water
  19. tear — to rip
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. chest — a box
  24. chest — of your body

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