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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. wax — to grow
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bore — to tire
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. race — a contest
  17. mine — for digging
  18. race — humankind
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. deal — to handle
  24. race — the arms race

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