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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bore — to tire
  4. last — final
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — for digging
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. content — happy
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. last — finally
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. perch — the fish
  14. last — to go on
  15. bore — to drill
  16. press — a publisher
  17. content — the amount
  18. press — to push
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. temple — side of the head

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