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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. season — in sport
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. season — of the year
  7. key — for a lock
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bear — the animal
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. key — the most important part
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bore — to tire
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. rush — hurry
  24. bore — to drill

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