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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. season — in sport
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. squash — the sport
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. mark — a grade
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a trace
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. squash — to crush
  12. season — of the year
  13. bore — to tire
  14. wind — moving air
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. foot — a measure
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. wind — moving air
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. date — the fruit
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. bore — to drill
  24. date — on the calendar

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