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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. rush — hurry
  7. wind — moving air
  8. kid — child
  9. ball — a great time
  10. branch — a division
  11. ball — a dance
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. bore — to drill
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mate — a friend
  16. kid — to tease
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. mate — to breed
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. mate — a partner
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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