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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bound — tied together
  3. face — to confront
  4. wax — to grow
  5. bore — to drill
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — goods
  12. bound — obliged
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bound — certain
  17. stem — to come from
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. wind — moving air
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. face — to point toward
  24. kick — in football

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