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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  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. bore — to tire
  2. bore — to drill
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. fall — to drop
  6. row — a line
  7. content — happy
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. march — music
  10. content — the amount
  11. spring — a coil
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. row — to paddle
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. track — to keep track
  16. fall — to drop
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. march — the month
  20. track — a song
  21. march — the month
  22. track — a path
  23. fall — the season
  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