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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — a weight
  5. shower — to wash
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. court — for sport
  8. hand — help
  9. spring — of water
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. court — of a king
  12. bore — to tire
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. lean — thin
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. spring — the season
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. bore — to drill
  20. shower — rain
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. spring — a coil
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. court — of law

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