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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. current — electric
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. current — happening now
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. bore — to drill
  8. pass — a permit
  9. bat — the animal
  10. current — of water
  11. file — a document
  12. rest — what's left
  13. file — a line of people
  14. game — a match
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. rest — what's left
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. rest — a break
  22. file — a tool
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. calf — a young animal

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