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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  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. bat — the animal
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. march — the month
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — help
  6. march — the month
  7. root — of a word
  8. bore — to tire
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. march — music
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. root — the cause
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. stem — to come from
  23. root — of a plant
  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