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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. tube — the underground
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. face — part of the head
  6. tube — a container
  7. object — to protest
  8. root — the cause
  9. fine — high quality
  10. bore — to drill
  11. clip — a video
  12. last — finally
  13. fine — all right
  14. object — an aim
  15. face — to confront
  16. last — to go on
  17. root — of a word
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. root — of a plant
  21. object — a thing
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. face — to point toward
  24. bore — to tire

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