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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. object — an aim
  3. object — to protest
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bore — to tire
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mine — for digging
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bore — to drill
  16. dip — to sink
  17. content — the amount
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. content — happy
  21. wound — an injury
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. object — a thing
  24. content — videos and posts

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