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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  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. bore — to drill
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cell — a phone
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. land — a country
  8. cell — in biology
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. root — of a word
  11. land — to come down
  12. degree — an amount
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. degree — from a university
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. wind — moving air
  21. land — ground
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a plant
  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