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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. spring — a coil
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bore — to drill
  6. spring — of water
  7. mark — a trace
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pit — in a race
  10. spring — the season
  11. bore — to tire
  12. file — a document
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. file — a tool
  15. pit — a hole
  16. file — a line of people
  17. tear — to rip
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. hand — help
  21. tear — from crying
  22. mark — a grade
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bore — gave birth

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