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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. cold — not warm
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. object — an aim
  9. object — to protest
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. bore — to drill
  12. wind — moving air
  13. clip — a video
  14. bore — to tire
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wind — moving air
  17. object — a thing
  18. clip — for paper
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. wake — a trail
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. clip — to cut
  24. dip — to dunk

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