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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 116 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 can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. bat — the animal
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. scale — in music
  11. bore — to drill
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bore — to tire
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. dip — to sink
  19. sharp — clever
  20. cold — an illness
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. sharp — exactly

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