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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. kid — to tease
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bore — to drill
  5. face — to confront
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — child
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. ground — a position
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. ground — crushed
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. saw — the tool
  14. tube — a container
  15. face — to point toward
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. stem — to come from
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bore — to tire
  21. face — part of the head
  22. tube — the underground
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. nail — on a finger

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