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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 116 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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bore — to drill
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bear — the animal
  5. season — in sport
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. object — to protest
  8. ball — a dance
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. object — an aim
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. shower — to wash
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. shower — rain
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. season — of the year
  23. object — a thing
  24. ball — a great time

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