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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. bore — to drill
  3. field — for sport
  4. wound — an injury
  5. face — part of the head
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. rash — hasty
  8. season — of the year
  9. rash — a series
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. wound — an injury
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. field — a subject
  15. face — to point toward
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. field — farmland
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. court — of law
  20. season — in sport
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. face — to confront
  23. bore — to tire
  24. season — to add flavour

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