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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bore — to tire
  5. rest — what's left
  6. shower — rain
  7. fine — high quality
  8. bore — to drill
  9. pop — music
  10. fine — all right
  11. pop — soda
  12. mine — for digging
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. pop — to visit
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. kid — to tease
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. cabinet — ministers

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