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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. bore — to drill
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. net — after costs
  6. bore — to tire
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. net — in sport
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. content — the amount
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. content — happy
  18. degree — temperature
  19. object — an aim
  20. object — to protest
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. object — a thing
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. net — for catching

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