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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. present — there
  3. object — an aim
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bound — certain
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. present — the time now
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bore — to tire
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a grade
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bound — tied together
  18. object — a thing
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. present — a gift
  24. bore — gave birth

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