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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. current — of water
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wind — moving air
  5. current — electric
  6. drill — a practice
  7. wind — moving air
  8. cap — a hat
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. drill — army training
  12. bore — to drill
  13. drill — the tool
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. cap — of ice
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. cell — in biology
  22. current — happening now
  23. bore — to tire
  24. cap — a lid

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