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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. kid — to tease
  3. present — there
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. shower — to wash
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. present — the time now
  9. kid — child
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. branch — a division
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. rule — a law
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. present — a gift
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bore — to tire
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. rule — government
  24. game — wild animals

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