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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. bore — to drill
  6. face — to point toward
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. tube — a container
  9. face — to confront
  10. row — a line
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. face — part of the head
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — to paddle
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. spring — the season
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bore — to tire
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. tube — the underground

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