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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. tube — the underground
  5. spring — a coil
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bore — to drill
  8. spring — the season
  9. net — after costs
  10. bound — tied together
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. chip — for betting
  14. bound — certain
  15. spring — of water
  16. chip — to eat
  17. snap — to click
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. bound — obliged
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. tube — a container
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. mine — for digging

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