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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. chest — of your body
  3. court — for sport
  4. bore — to tire
  5. net — in sport
  6. bore — to drill
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. court — of law
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. court — of a king
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. chip — for betting
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. chest — of your body
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. chip — to eat
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — after costs
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. chest — a box

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