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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: field · present · bulb · bore · spell · bat · mark · shower

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. present — a gift
  6. spell — magic
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. mark — a trace
  9. field — for sport
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. spell — letters
  18. present — the time now
  19. spell — a short time
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — to wash
  22. present — there
  23. bore — to tire
  24. mark — a grade

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