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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bore — to drill
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fall — to drop
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. present — the time now
  10. bore — to tire
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. present — a gift
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fall — to drop
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. field — for sport
  18. deal — to handle
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — farmland
  21. date — the fruit
  22. wind — moving air
  23. present — there
  24. fall — the season

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