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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 120 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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. rule — a law
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. row — a line
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bore — to tire
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. row — to paddle
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. rule — government
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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