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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 120 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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. kid — to tease
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. tube — a container
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kid — child
  7. wind — moving air
  8. cap — of ice
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. last — finally
  13. suit — clothes
  14. last — final
  15. cap — a hat
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. suit — to fit
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. last — to go on
  20. bore — to tire
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bore — to drill
  23. tube — the underground
  24. wind — to turn a key

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