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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bore — to tire
  5. current — of water
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. current — electric
  9. fall — the season
  10. cap — a hat
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. cap — of ice
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. fall — to drop
  15. current — happening now
  16. spring — a coil
  17. cap — a lid
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. spring — of water
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. spring — the season
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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