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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bound — certain
  3. net — in sport
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. content — happy
  6. firm — decided
  7. bound — tied together
  8. firm — steady
  9. bore — to drill
  10. file — a tool
  11. content — the amount
  12. bound — obliged
  13. firm — a company
  14. plane — a tool
  15. file — a line of people
  16. net — after costs
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. file — a document
  19. stem — to come from
  20. net — for catching
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — of a plant

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