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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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: mine · bass · fall · bore · prune · bowl · wind · chair

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. bass — low music
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. chair — a leader
  8. fall — the season
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. wind — moving air
  17. fall — to drop
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bass — the fish
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bore — gave birth

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