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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. file — a line of people
  3. spring — a coil
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. spring — the season
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chest — a box
  8. pit — a hole
  9. present — there
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bore — to tire
  12. present — a gift
  13. rock — a stone
  14. file — a tool
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. bore — to drill
  17. file — a document
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. present — the time now
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — in a race
  24. rock — music

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