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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of a king
  5. bore — to drill
  6. saw — the tool
  7. pound — a weight
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. court — of law
  11. bear — the animal
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. tube — a container
  14. field — farmland
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. dip — to sink
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bear — the animal
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bear — to put up with

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