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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. bore — to tire
  3. spring — a coil
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. wind — moving air
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. stand — to bear
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. kick — in football
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. bound — certain
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bore — to drill
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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