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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — the season
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. suit — to fit
  7. clip — a video
  8. bore — to drill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fall — to drop
  13. suit — clothes
  14. content — the amount
  15. fork — in a road
  16. suit — in cards
  17. content — happy
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. cold — not warm
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bore — to tire
  24. cold — an illness

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