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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 carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. cold — an illness
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a music group
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. cap — a lid
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. stock — shares
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cap — of ice
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. cold — not warm
  15. band — a ring
  16. cap — a hat
  17. kick — in football
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. bore — to drill
  20. stock — goods
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. march — the month
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. bore — to tire

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