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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. fine — all right
  3. can — to be able to
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. drill — the tool
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. drill — army training
  10. can — a tin
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bore — to drill
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. ball — a dance
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. can — a tin
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a ring
  21. fine — high quality
  22. drill — a practice
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. ball — a round shape

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