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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. court — for sport
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. court — of law
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. court — of a king
  10. bore — to drill
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — to get on
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cold — not warm
  16. craft — a skill
  17. cold — an illness
  18. craft — boats
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. board — a committee
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. jam — a tight spot

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