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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. chest — a box
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. last — final
  5. rock — a stone
  6. stock — goods
  7. race — the arms race
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. bore — to drill
  10. last — finally
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bore — to tire
  16. track — a song
  17. chest — of your body
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. track — to keep track
  20. stock — shares
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — humankind
  23. rock — music
  24. last — to go on

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