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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. roll — a list
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bore — to tire
  7. drill — army training
  8. bore — to drill
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. kid — to tease
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. drill — the tool
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. drill — a practice
  17. date — the fruit
  18. kid — child
  19. pass — a permit
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. roll — a cake
  23. stem — to come from
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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