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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. spell — magic
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bore — to drill
  6. cap — a lid
  7. wake — a trail
  8. mate — a partner
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. cap — of ice
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. cap — a hat
  18. spell — a short time
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fall — the season
  21. bat — the animal
  22. spell — letters
  23. fall — to drop
  24. mate — to breed

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