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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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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. mug — to rob
  4. tube — a container
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — to tease
  9. mug — a cup
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. hand — in cards
  13. degree — from a university
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. branch — a division
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bore — to tire
  22. kid — child
  23. mug — a face
  24. degree — an amount

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