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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. spring — of water
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. prune — to trim
  9. march — music
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spring — the season
  12. bore — to tire
  13. spring — a coil
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. rash — a series
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. bore — to drill
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. mouse — for a computer

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