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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. wind — moving air
  4. prune — to trim
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. bore — to drill
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. swing — music
  13. court — of law
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. swing — in golf
  17. prune — to trim
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. rush — hurry
  20. wind — moving air
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. plane — a tool
  24. calf — a young animal

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