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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. mug — a face
  3. bore — to tire
  4. mug — a cup
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. bore — to drill
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. object — to protest
  10. spring — of water
  11. band — a ring
  12. mug — to rob
  13. object — a thing
  14. cold — not warm
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. spring — the season
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. object — an aim
  21. band — a music group
  22. cold — an illness
  23. spring — a coil
  24. racket — for tennis

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