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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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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: race · last · lean · present · bore · land · squash · wound

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. wound — an injury
  4. race — the arms race
  5. land — to come down
  6. bore — to tire
  7. last — finally
  8. last — to go on
  9. present — there
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — thin
  12. present — the time now
  13. land — ground
  14. squash — to crush
  15. land — a country
  16. bore — to drill
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. squash — the sport
  19. present — a gift
  20. race — humankind
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. lean — to bend
  23. wound — an injury
  24. race — a contest

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