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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: saw · fan · face · cell · spring · bore · clip · cabinet

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bore — to drill
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. cell — a phone
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. bore — to tire
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. clip — a video
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. face — to confront
  13. spring — the season
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. spring — of water
  17. face — part of the head
  18. spring — a coil
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. face — to point toward
  22. saw — the tool
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. clip — for paper

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