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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. capital — money
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. date — the fruit
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bore — to tire
  8. wound — an injury
  9. board — a committee
  10. spell — a short time
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lean — to bend
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. wound — an injury
  16. spell — magic
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. spell — letters
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. lean — thin
  21. capital — a city
  22. degree — an amount
  23. board — to get on
  24. degree — temperature

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