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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: rest · mine · wound · stick · bore · rash · stand · clip

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bore — to tire
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. rest — a break
  5. stand — to bear
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. rest — what's left
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — a video
  12. wound — an injury
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rash — a series
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. bore — to drill
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. clip — for paper
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rest — what's left

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