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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. pass — a permit
  3. press — to push
  4. content — happy
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. capital — a city
  7. content — the amount
  8. wind — moving air
  9. craft — a skill
  10. capital — money
  11. press — newspapers
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. last — finally
  14. craft — boats
  15. wind — moving air
  16. last — final
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. last — to go on
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. press — a publisher
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bore — to tire
  24. wind — to turn a key

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