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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. charge — electricity
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. charge — in control
  5. stem — to come from
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. hand — in cards
  9. charge — a price
  10. perch — the fish
  11. bat — the animal
  12. race — humankind
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. race — a contest
  16. bore — to tire
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bore — to drill
  23. hand — help
  24. race — the arms race

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