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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 116 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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bore — to drill
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. cold — not warm
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a leader
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. bank — for money
  10. net — for catching
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. root — of a word
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. cold — an illness
  15. root — the cause
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bank — of a river
  18. bore — to tire
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. net — after costs
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. root — of a plant
  23. net — in sport
  24. bat — for baseball

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