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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  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. cap — of ice
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. cap — a lid
  4. tear — to rip
  5. wind — moving air
  6. tear — from crying
  7. charge — electricity
  8. cap — a hat
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bore — to drill
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — the earth
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. tear — from crying
  19. stock — shares
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — in control
  22. stock — goods
  23. ground — a position
  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