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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  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. kid — to tease
  2. bore — to drill
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bulb — for light
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. content — the amount
  7. stand — to bear
  8. craft — boats
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. kid — child
  13. content — happy
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. hand — help
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bulb — for light
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. craft — a skill
  23. capital — money
  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