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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cue — a signal
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bound — certain
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. field — farmland
  8. bore — to drill
  9. cue — a hint
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bulb — for light
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. rest — a break
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. cold — not warm
  21. field — a subject
  22. cue — for pool
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. field — for sport

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