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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. shower — rain
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. date — the fruit
  8. shower — to wash
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. capital — money
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bore — to drill
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. capital — a city
  24. bore — to tire

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