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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mark — a trace
  4. field — farmland
  5. pound — a weight
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bore — to drill
  9. field — a subject
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. mark — a grade
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wind — moving air
  15. row — to paddle
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. row — a line
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bore — to tire
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. cap — a hat
  24. field — for sport

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