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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. wind — moving air
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. fall — to drop
  10. last — to go on
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. ball — a great time
  13. bore — to drill
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. ball — a dance
  16. fall — to drop
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. stem — to come from
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. last — final
  22. fall — the season
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. last — finally

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