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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. drill — a practice
  3. can — a tin
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bore — to tire
  6. can — to be able to
  7. track — a song
  8. row — a line
  9. can — a tin
  10. pass — a permit
  11. track — a path
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. track — to keep track
  14. drill — army training
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bore — to drill
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bark — to shout
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. pass — to spend time

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