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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  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. bore — gave birth
  2. track — a song
  3. bore — to tire
  4. track — to keep track
  5. track — a path
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. field — for sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. cap — of ice
  14. field — farmland
  15. rush — hurry
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cap — a hat
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. field — a subject
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — the tool
  22. stand — to bear
  23. drill — a practice
  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