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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. track — a path
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bore — to drill
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. wind — moving air
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. wind — moving air
  16. land — ground
  17. bore — to tire
  18. track — a song
  19. foot — a measure
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. land — a country
  22. land — to come down
  23. kick — in football
  24. bowl — to roll

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