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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 120 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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. content — happy
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. spring — a coil
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. spring — the season
  11. bore — to tire
  12. content — the amount
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. pop — music
  15. spring — of water
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. pop — soda

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