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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. hand — in cards
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. net — for catching
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. vault — a safe
  7. field — for sport
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. spring — a coil
  10. hand — help
  11. net — in sport
  12. bore — to drill
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. field — a subject
  15. spring — the season
  16. roll — a list
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. field — farmland
  19. net — after costs
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. bore — to tire
  22. spring — of water
  23. roll — a cake
  24. hand — part of the body

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