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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 116 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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. band — a music group
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — to bend
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — for digging
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. lean — thin
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bore — to drill
  20. rush — hurry
  21. plane — a tool
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — the animal

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