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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. bore — to tire
  5. bore — to drill
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. can — to be able to
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. ground — a position
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wax — to grow
  13. row — a line
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. ground — the earth
  17. branch — a division
  18. content — happy
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. saw — the tool
  22. content — the amount
  23. saw — the tool
  24. row — to paddle

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