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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. season — in sport
  3. can — to be able to
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. present — a gift
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stock — goods
  10. can — a tin
  11. season — of the year
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bore — to tire
  14. pop — music
  15. can — a tin
  16. chip — to eat
  17. cold — not warm
  18. present — there
  19. present — the time now
  20. chip — for betting
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — to visit

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