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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. court — of a king
  3. mug — a cup
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. content — happy
  7. mug — a face
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bore — to tire
  11. court — for sport
  12. bound — certain
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. mug — to rob
  15. court — of law
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. content — the amount
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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