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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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. perch — for a bird
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mate — a partner
  6. present — a gift
  7. band — a ring
  8. present — there
  9. last — final
  10. band — a music group
  11. perch — the fish
  12. bore — to tire
  13. mate — a friend
  14. deal — to handle
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. last — to go on
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. present — the time now
  20. mate — to breed
  21. last — finally
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. mine — an explosive
  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