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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. squash — to crush
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. chip — to eat
  7. fall — to drop
  8. stock — shares
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. tear — to rip
  12. chest — of your body
  13. fall — the season
  14. stock — goods
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bore — to tire
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chip — for betting
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. band — a music group
  22. chest — a box
  23. squash — the sport
  24. band — a ring

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