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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. kid — child
  3. object — to protest
  4. roll — a list
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bear — the animal
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. bear — the animal
  11. last — finally
  12. bore — to drill
  13. kid — to tease
  14. object — an aim
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. swing — music
  17. bore — to tire
  18. object — a thing
  19. last — to go on
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. saw — the tool
  22. last — final
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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