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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. wound — an injury
  6. stock — shares
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. bore — to drill
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. wound — an injury
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. fine — high quality
  15. staff — employees
  16. stock — goods
  17. file — a line of people
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. fine — all right
  22. file — a document
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. file — a tool

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