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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bore — to drill
  7. stock — goods
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of a king
  10. press — to push
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. fall — the season
  15. fall — to drop
  16. capital — a city
  17. press — newspapers
  18. stock — shares
  19. press — a publisher
  20. capital — money
  21. fall — to drop
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. court — of law
  24. leaves — of a tree

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