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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bore — to drill
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. fork — in a road
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. plane — a tool
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. bat — the animal
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. cold — not warm

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