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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 124 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. cap — of ice
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. cap — a hat
  6. bear — the animal
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bore — to tire
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — an illness
  13. hand — help
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. prune — to trim
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. hand — in cards
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rush — hurry
  24. prune — to trim

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