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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. fall — to drop
  3. present — a gift
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. bore — to tire
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. fall — the season
  11. drill — the tool
  12. can — a tin
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. drill — a practice
  16. drill — army training
  17. chair — a leader
  18. bore — to drill
  19. present — there
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. present — the time now
  22. pound — a weight
  23. can — a tin
  24. fall — to drop

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