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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. chair — a leader
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. last — final
  7. current — happening now
  8. current — of water
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bore — to tire
  11. current — electric
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a trace
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mark — a grade
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — finally
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. bore — to drill
  24. prune — to trim

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