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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cap — of ice
  3. bore — to tire
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. shower — rain
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. cap — a hat
  8. content — the amount
  9. mark — a grade
  10. content — happy
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. mark — a trace
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bore — to drill
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. shower — to wash
  24. dip — to sink

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