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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. last — final
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. file — a tool
  9. date — the fruit
  10. season — in sport
  11. bore — to drill
  12. face — to confront
  13. season — of the year
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. file — a line of people
  16. face — part of the head
  17. last — finally
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. last — to go on
  21. file — a document
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bore — to tire
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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