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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. bore — to tire
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cold — an illness
  9. march — the month
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. march — music
  12. fall — to drop
  13. stem — to come from
  14. tube — a container
  15. chest — a box
  16. march — the month
  17. fall — to drop
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cold — not warm
  22. fall — the season
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — of your body

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