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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bore — to tire
  4. chip — to eat
  5. cell — a phone
  6. drill — army training
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. content — happy
  10. drill — a practice
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. chip — for betting
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. kick — in football
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. content — the amount
  20. tube — a container
  21. tube — the underground
  22. stand — to bear
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bore — to drill

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