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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. spring — of water
  3. fine — high quality
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. spring — a coil
  7. capital — a city
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. chair — a leader
  10. ball — a dance
  11. capital — money
  12. ball — a great time
  13. bore — to drill
  14. wind — moving air
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. spring — the season
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. fine — all right
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pound — for dogs

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