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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. bore — to drill
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. stand — to bear
  7. field — farmland
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. capital — a city
  11. field — a subject
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. foot — a measure
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — not warm
  17. capital — money
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. bore — to tire
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — music
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. kick — a thrill

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