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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 120 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — to drill
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. firm — decided
  9. land — to come down
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. rush — hurry
  13. game — wild animals
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. firm — a company
  16. land — ground
  17. stem — to come from
  18. land — a country
  19. band — a music group
  20. firm — steady
  21. game — a match
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. swing — music
  24. band — a ring

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