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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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. court — for sport
  3. march — the month
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. land — ground
  8. land — to come down
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. band — a music group
  12. bear — the animal
  13. land — a country
  14. court — of a king
  15. march — music
  16. bat — the animal
  17. march — the month
  18. court — of law
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a rubber band

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