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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bore — to drill
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bore — to tire
  6. chest — of your body
  7. race — the arms race
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. race — a contest
  10. pop — music
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. pop — soda
  13. face — to point toward
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ball — a dance
  17. ball — a great time
  18. pop — to visit
  19. chest — a box
  20. face — part of the head
  21. face — to confront
  22. race — humankind
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wind — to turn a key

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