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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. rock — music
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. wax — to grow
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. stock — goods
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. bore — to tire
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. rock — a stone
  24. stock — shares

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