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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. suit — to fit
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. file — a tool
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. suit — clothes
  7. bore — to drill
  8. file — a document
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bore — to tire
  11. kid — to tease
  12. lean — thin
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. present — there
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. suit — in cards
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. lean — to bend
  20. branch — a division
  21. present — the time now
  22. kid — child
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bore — gave birth

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