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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. stock — goods
  3. clip — for paper
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. bore — to tire
  7. track — to keep track
  8. drill — a practice
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. pit — a hole
  12. pit — in a race
  13. track — a path
  14. drill — the tool
  15. clip — a video
  16. track — a song
  17. bulb — for light
  18. stock — shares
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bore — to drill
  22. drill — army training
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. saw — the tool

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