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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bear — the animal
  5. squash — the sport
  6. degree — an amount
  7. march — the month
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. march — the month
  11. chip — for betting
  12. squash — to crush
  13. hand — in cards
  14. bore — to drill
  15. chip — to eat
  16. bore — to tire
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. march — music
  19. degree — from a university
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bear — the animal
  24. chip — in a computer

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