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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bore — to drill
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. cold — not warm
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bore — to tire
  9. scale — in music
  10. mate — to breed
  11. scale — size or range
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. capital — money
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — a partner
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. capital — a city
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. capital — a big letter

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