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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to tire
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. march — the month
  9. foot — a measure
  10. march — music
  11. race — a contest
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. rush — hurry
  16. race — the arms race
  17. perch — the fish
  18. march — the month
  19. cell — in biology
  20. race — humankind
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — to bear
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bore — to drill

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