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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. root — of a word
  5. bore — to tire
  6. root — of a plant
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mug — to rob
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. wind — moving air
  11. race — humankind
  12. last — to go on
  13. root — the cause
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. bore — to drill
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. last — finally
  21. mug — a face
  22. last — final
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. branch — a division

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