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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 120 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. track — a song
  3. root — of a word
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. bore — to tire
  6. track — a path
  7. sharp — clever
  8. root — the cause
  9. drill — army training
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bore — to drill
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. track — to keep track
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. drill — a practice
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. drill — the tool
  21. kid — child
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. root — of a plant
  24. ruler — a monarch

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