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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 116 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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. cold — not warm
  3. staff — a stick
  4. mate — to breed
  5. staff — employees
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bore — to tire
  8. mate — a partner
  9. current — of water
  10. spring — the season
  11. season — of the year
  12. mate — a friend
  13. current — happening now
  14. spring — a coil
  15. staff — employees
  16. current — electric
  17. bore — to drill
  18. season — in sport
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. spring — of water
  24. leaves — lets stay

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