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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: wind · sharp · fall · bore · bear · clip · mug · stand

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mug — a cup
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bore — to drill
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bore — to tire
  13. bear — the animal
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. fall — to drop
  17. clip — to cut
  18. clip — a video
  19. mug — a face
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bear — the animal
  22. mug — to rob
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. fall — the season

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