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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. last — final
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to drill
  7. present — a gift
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. present — the time now
  13. bore — to tire
  14. last — finally
  15. shower — to wash
  16. field — a subject
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. court — of a king
  19. field — for sport
  20. wind — moving air
  21. field — farmland
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. last — to go on
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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