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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. rest — what's left
  3. scale — in music
  4. rest — what's left
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — money
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. can — a tin
  15. game — a match
  16. rest — a break
  17. can — to be able to
  18. scale — size or range
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. can — a tin
  22. capital — a city
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. bore — to drill

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