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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. chest — of your body
  4. rock — music
  5. craft — boats
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. craft — a skill
  8. bore — to tire
  9. chest — a box
  10. bore — to drill
  11. chair — a leader
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rock — a stone
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. prune — to trim
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wound — an injury

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