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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. suit — to fit
  3. bore — to drill
  4. row — to paddle
  5. content — happy
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. chest — a box
  9. capital — a city
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bore — to tire
  12. game — wild animals
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bound — obliged
  16. capital — money
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. suit — clothes
  19. chest — of your body
  20. row — a line
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. suit — in cards
  24. content — the amount

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