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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. spell — letters
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bound — tied together
  10. field — farmland
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bound — obliged
  13. stock — shares
  14. bore — to tire
  15. net — after costs
  16. spell — magic
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — for catching
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bound — certain
  21. field — for sport
  22. spell — a short time
  23. field — a subject
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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