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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — to drill
  4. row — a line
  5. net — after costs
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. row — to paddle
  8. last — finally
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. swing — music
  12. net — in sport
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. last — final
  15. track — a path
  16. net — for catching
  17. swing — in golf
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. capital — money
  21. track — to keep track
  22. swing — to play on
  23. capital — a city
  24. track — a song

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