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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. last — final
  3. rock — music
  4. current — happening now
  5. squash — to crush
  6. rock — a stone
  7. squash — the sport
  8. field — for sport
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. last — finally
  11. face — to point toward
  12. ground — a position
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. bore — to drill
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — farmland
  18. current — electric
  19. face — to confront
  20. face — part of the head
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. bore — to tire
  23. current — of water
  24. last — to go on

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