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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bore — to drill
  3. perch — the fish
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. kid — to tease
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. kid — child
  8. fall — to drop
  9. race — a contest
  10. face — to confront
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. fall — the season
  14. stock — goods
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. stock — shares
  21. race — the arms race
  22. bore — to tire
  23. fall — to drop
  24. race — humankind

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