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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bore — to tire
  4. row — a line
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — music
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. tube — a container
  11. mate — to breed
  12. tube — the underground
  13. swing — in golf
  14. row — to paddle
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. bore — to drill
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mate — a partner

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