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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. net — after costs
  6. dip — to sink
  7. bore — to drill
  8. prune — to trim
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. date — the fruit
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. net — for catching
  15. scale — in music
  16. net — in sport
  17. prune — to trim
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. scale — size or range
  22. rest — what's left
  23. tube — a container
  24. prune — the fruit

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