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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. wind — moving air
  3. charge — a price
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. charge — in control
  8. charge — electricity
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. mine — for digging
  12. bore — to drill
  13. wake — a trail
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wind — moving air
  23. kid — child
  24. bore — gave birth

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