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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bore — to drill
  4. bear — the animal
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. cue — a hint
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. game — wild animals
  10. shower — rain
  11. cue — a signal
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. pound — a weight
  18. season — of the year
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bore — to tire
  22. cue — for pool
  23. season — in sport
  24. game — a match

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