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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · present · bore · wind · stock · cabinet

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bore — to drill
  4. wind — moving air
  5. tear — to rip
  6. stock — goods
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. present — a gift
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. stock — shares
  13. bore — to tire
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. present — the time now
  18. stock — a soup base

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