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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bore — to tire
  4. hand — in cards
  5. face — part of the head
  6. pop — to visit
  7. pop — music
  8. mine — for digging
  9. rule — government
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. face — to point toward
  12. pop — soda
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. bore — to drill
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. face — to confront
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. rule — a law
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. mine — an explosive

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