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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 124 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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. shower — to wash
  3. tube — the underground
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. stem — to come from
  8. degree — from a university
  9. tube — a container
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. degree — temperature
  13. shower — rain
  14. board — to get on
  15. bore — to drill
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. degree — an amount
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. board — a committee
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. stem — of a plant

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