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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cell — in biology
  4. bat — the animal
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bore — to drill
  17. cell — a phone
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. prune — to trim
  21. march — the month
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bore — to tire

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