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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bore — to tire
  3. present — a gift
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. net — in sport
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. net — after costs
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. spring — of water
  11. tear — from crying
  12. spring — the season
  13. tear — from crying
  14. present — there
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. net — for catching
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bore — to drill
  20. present — the time now
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — music
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. wake — a trail

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