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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. swing — music
  3. tube — the underground
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. date — the fruit
  6. bore — to tire
  7. wind — moving air
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wind — moving air
  12. object — a thing
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. bore — to drill
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. object — an aim
  21. swing — to play on
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. mine — for digging
  24. tube — a container

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