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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bore — to tire
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. stock — goods
  10. pit — in a race
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bore — to drill
  14. object — an aim
  15. object — a thing
  16. stock — shares
  17. scale — in music
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wind — moving air
  24. scale — size or range

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