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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. file — a tool
  3. net — for catching
  4. bore — to drill
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. net — after costs
  7. firm — decided
  8. file — a line of people
  9. pit — in a race
  10. firm — a company
  11. pit — a hole
  12. file — a document
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. firm — steady
  15. net — in sport
  16. march — music
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — final
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. last — finally
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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