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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. rock — a stone
  6. bore — to tire
  7. clip — for paper
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spell — magic
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. clip — a video
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. rock — music
  17. stem — to come from
  18. bore — to drill
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. spell — letters
  22. clip — to cut
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. stem — of a plant

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