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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bore — to tire
  4. bore — to drill
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. swing — to play on
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. game — a match
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. swing — music
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. wind — moving air
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. swing — in golf
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. perch — the fish
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. wind — moving air
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. stand — to bear

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