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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. content — happy
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cap — a hat
  7. wind — moving air
  8. content — the amount
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. cap — of ice
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. fall — to drop
  15. deal — to handle
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bore — to tire
  18. fall — the season
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bore — to drill
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. branch — a division
  24. coach — a trainer

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