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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. last — finally
  4. last — to go on
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. drill — army training
  7. drill — a practice
  8. stem — to come from
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. season — of the year
  12. can — a tin
  13. last — final
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. bore — to drill
  18. season — in sport
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. drill — the tool
  21. bore — to tire
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. can — to be able to
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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