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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bore — to drill
  4. march — the month
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chest — of your body
  9. face — to confront
  10. bore — to tire
  11. march — music
  12. cold — not warm
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. chest — of your body
  16. face — part of the head
  17. club — for dancing
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. face — to point toward
  21. club — a group
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. club — for golf
  24. chest — a box

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