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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. charge — a price
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pit — in a race
  8. tear — from crying
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bore — to tire
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bore — to drill
  14. tube — the underground
  15. charge — electricity
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. tube — a container
  18. charge — in control
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. tear — to rip
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cold — an illness

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