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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. race — a contest
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. cap — of ice
  6. wake — a trail
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bore — to tire
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. race — humankind
  11. cap — a hat
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. tear — from crying
  14. branch — a division
  15. game — a match
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. race — the arms race
  18. bore — to drill
  19. tear — from crying
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. cap — a lid
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. tear — to rip
  24. wake — before a funeral

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