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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. club — for dancing
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. club — a group
  8. bore — to tire
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. club — for golf
  13. degree — temperature
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. wake — a trail
  20. degree — from a university
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. kick — in football
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. degree — an amount

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