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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. court — for sport
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. ground — a position
  6. stem — to come from
  7. ground — crushed
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. file — a document
  10. ground — the earth
  11. court — of law
  12. bore — to drill
  13. shower — rain
  14. rock — music
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. ball — a dance
  18. rock — a stone
  19. ball — a great time
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bore — to tire
  23. court — of a king
  24. file — a line of people

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