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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. row — to paddle
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. row — a line
  9. bound — certain
  10. roll — a cake
  11. bore — to tire
  12. net — in sport
  13. chip — to eat
  14. bore — to drill
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. chip — for betting
  17. cold — an illness
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — for catching
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bound — tied together
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. cold — not warm

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