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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. bore — to tire
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. cell — in biology
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. row — to paddle
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. content — the amount
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — in golf
  13. wake — a trail
  14. bore — to drill
  15. content — happy
  16. swing — to play on
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cell — a phone
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. row — a line

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