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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. cold — not warm
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. bore — to tire
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bank — of a river
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bank — for money
  11. tear — from crying
  12. dip — to sink
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. tear — to rip
  15. mate — a partner
  16. bank — for money
  17. bore — to drill
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. mate — to breed
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. hand — help
  24. dip — a sauce

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