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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. tube — the underground
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pit — a hole
  5. tube — a container
  6. capital — money
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. capital — a city
  10. fall — to drop
  11. shower — to wash
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bore — to tire
  15. fall — the season
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. shower — rain
  21. pit — in a race
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. bore — to drill

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