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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bore — to drill
  3. swing — to play on
  4. stock — goods
  5. swing — music
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. last — finally
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. bore — to tire
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. last — to go on
  20. pound — a weight
  21. last — final
  22. swing — in golf
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. perch — the fish

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