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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. saw — the tool
  5. march — the month
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. court — for sport
  8. march — the month
  9. court — of a king
  10. row — a line
  11. court — of law
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. mark — a trace
  15. saw — the tool
  16. root — the cause
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bore — to drill
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. row — to paddle
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — of a word
  23. march — music
  24. pit — in a race

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