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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. march — the month
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. charge — in control
  5. hand — help
  6. ground — a position
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — a series
  9. march — music
  10. hand — in cards
  11. march — the month
  12. charge — a price
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bore — to drill
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cold — an illness
  18. ground — the earth
  19. charge — electricity
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. ground — crushed
  24. pitch — completely

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