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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bore — to drill
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. craft — boats
  5. bore — to tire
  6. kid — to tease
  7. lean — to bend
  8. perch — the fish
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. mate — to breed
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — a tin
  14. scale — size or range
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. mate — a friend
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — in music
  20. craft — a skill
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. lean — thin
  24. kid — child

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