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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. net — in sport
  3. bore — to drill
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. wind — moving air
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of a king
  8. net — after costs
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. court — of law
  12. net — for catching
  13. mate — a partner
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bore — to tire
  17. hand — help
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. mate — to breed
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. perch — the fish
  23. hand — in cards
  24. perch — for a bird

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