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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. present — there
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bore — to drill
  7. band — a ring
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. scale — size or range
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. race — humankind
  13. present — a gift
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. scale — in music
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. fork — in a road
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. band — a music group
  22. present — the time now
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. wake — before a funeral

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