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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. field — for sport
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. press — to push
  7. bore — to drill
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. field — farmland
  10. kid — child
  11. bore — to tire
  12. press — newspapers
  13. mate — a friend
  14. press — a publisher
  15. plane — a tool
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. field — a subject
  18. kid — to tease
  19. mate — to breed
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. mate — a partner
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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